Panjim I February 6, 2011 I Postal Reg. No. Goa 101 I Price Rs. 3.00 I Air Surcharge Rs 2 I Pages 16+10

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Mubarak’s
son, top
aides quit

Sachin Ambadoskar

BJP duo, Churchill clash
Team HeRaLD

Cairo, Feb 5: Embattled
President Hosni Mubarak’s
powerful son Gamal and top
leaders of ruling party today
quit their posts, but their
conciliatory gesture drew a
blank amid mounting pressure from protestors demanding the immediate
ouster of the Egyptian leader.
The six-member steering
committee of the National
Democratic Party, including
secretary-general Safwat elSharif, stepped down in a
move to calm down protests
against Mubarak.
Hossam Badrawi, who is
reputed to have good relations with opposition figures,
has been appointed as the
NDP secretary general.
Earlier reports had said
the President had also quit
the National Democratic
Party, but the state TV did
not name the president and
announced that members of
the top decision-making

committee had resigned
from their posts.
The top executive of the
ruling National Democratic
Party, which includes the
president’s son Gamal
Mubarak who is head of the
powerful policies committee,
resigned from ruling party,
state television said.
“The members of the executive committee resigned
from their posts,” it said.
Gamal, a member of the
Steering Committee, has
been seen as being groomed
by his father to succeed him
as president.
Omar Suleiman, the Vice
President promised last
week that Gamal would not
run for president in elections
due in September.
Uncertainty and tension
gripped Egypt with international clamour growing on
beleaguered President to
hand over power immediately. PTI

Top Navy man
sacked in
sex scandal

Tainted Pak
trio stumped

New Delhi, Feb 5: A senior
Navy officer has been sacked
for having sexual relations
with a Russian woman in
Moscow as head of the Indian team overseeing the
refit of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov there.
Commodore Sukhjinder
Singh was posted in Moscow
between 2005 to 2007 as the
Indian warship production
superintendent to oversee
Gorshkov’s refit when he developed illicit relationship
with the woman. PTI

Finance Dept lists irregularities in awarding contract for
power plant in Chattisgarh to supply power to Goa
SURaJ NaNDReKaR

Aamer, Asif and Salman.
2.1.1 of the Code that (respectively) Asif agreed to
bowl and did bowl a deliberate no ball in the Lord’s Test
match played between Pakistan and England from 26 to
29 August 2010, Aamer
agreed to bowl and did bowl
two deliberate no balls in the
>Continued on pg 11

Panjim, Feb 5: The Goa
Government has flouted all
rules, including observations
made by the Finance Department, to award a contract to a power developer
for setting up power project
in Chattisgarh, where the
State has been allotted a coal
block by the central Government.
The ostensible objective
was to access power produced by the developer to
augment the State’s power
reserves.

The Centre in 2001 had
communicated to all States
informing that State Government Undertakings are
allowed to do mining of coking and non-coking coal or
lignite reserves, anywhere in
country subject to certain
conditions.
While till 2001 to 2007 no
Government acted on the
communication, in 2008 the
Digambar Kamat Government appointed Goa Industrial
Development
Corporation (GIDC) as the
nodal agency for implementing the scheme.

Goa can be the happiest State in the
world: Mashelkar
aSHWIN TOmBaT

G

oa should be the “happiest
State in the world” by 2035;
where every Goan will do
well, there is harmony, pristine nature,
and development without destruction, eminent scientist Dr R A
Mashelkar said in the inaugural lecture
of the D D Kosmabi Festival of Ideas at
Kala Academy, Panjim, on Saturday.
Pointing out that innovation and
knowledge will drive the present century, he said Goa – owing to its small
size, high human development indices, education and widespread
knowledge of English – is best suited
to be a knowledge economy.
Describing himself as a “dangerous
optimist”, Dr Mashelkar cited his own
background — of a boy coming from
a poor family that struggled to make
ends meet, and was unable to afford

Margao, Feb 5: Three days
after they clashed in the Assembly in the just concluded
Session over the alleged
water tank distribution scam
in the PWD, the tremors of
the fierce battle between the
BJP led by Manohar Parrikar-Damu Naik duo and
PWD Minister, Churchill
Alemao-Vijay
Sardessai
combine were strongly felt in
Fatorda on Saturday.
While the PWD Minister
dared Parrikar to hold an
Opinion Poll to seek the
pulse of Goans on the functioning of the PWD during
his tenure, the Leader of the
Opposition said a Commission of Inquiry to probe into
works executed by the PWD
bill wise pertaining to just
one year would nail the
PWD Minister.
Both the PWD Minister
and the Opposition leader
were in Borda-Fatorda on
Saturday attending different
functions in and around the
Multipurpose school com-

plex.
Alemao took the platform
at a sports meet held for the
deaf and dumb at the Multipurpose grounds challenging the BJP to prove the
charges of corruption.
Alemao thundered: “I
swear by my family that I
have not pocketed even one
rupee from the distribution
of water tanks to the common man and the downtrodden”.
“The people of Goa are
aware of my achievements
during my tenure as PWD
Minister. I am confident that
an Opinion Poll would give
me a clean chit and expose
the BJP’s baseless propaganda”, Alemao asserted.
That’s not all. The PWD
Minister publicly declared
that he would soon descend
in Fatorda to drum up support for his close aide and
GPCC General Secretary
Vijay Sardessai in the run up
to the coming Assembly
polls.
Saturday afternoon saw
>Continued on pg 11

Govt signs power project MoU
bypassing financial norms

ICC imposes lengthy sanctions after
finding them guilty of spot-fixing
Doha, Feb 5: Ending months
of uncertainty, the ICC today
banned former Pakistan
captain Salman Butt for 10
years and sanctioned seven
and five years of ineligibility
for pace duo of Mohammad
Asif and Mohammad Aamer
after finding the three cricketers guilty of spot-fixing.
In its verdict, the ICC imposed 10 years ban on Butt
with five years of suspended
sentence, Asif a seven-year
sanction with two years suspended, while Aamer was
banned for five years.
“The Tribunal found that
the charges under Article

FATORDA ERUPTS
IN WAR OF WORDS

RAM-ayana: Quotes of R A Mashelkar

“

It is not the size of the
budget but the size of the
idea that matters”.

cause that is where I am
going to spend the rest of my
life”.

When ‘Satyam’ (truth) loses
its meaning, when ‘Adarsh’
(ideal) loses its meaning; we
need to do something about it”.

The ‘I’ in India should stand
for innovation, not for inhibition or imitation”.

Making the impossible possible is a thing of the mind”.
I only think of the future, beeven school fees, studying under a
street lamp, and then going on to become a prestigious Fellow of the Royal
Society in Britain — as an example of
“Making the Impossible, Possible”; the
subject of his talk.
He said India had gained three free-

“When 1.2 billion Indians get
up each morning and say:
‘My India,’ what an India that
will be!”.
doms over the past 60-odd years. The
first was political freedom in 1947, followed by economic freedom (the freedom to compete) in 1991, when then
Finance Minister Manmohan Singh
opened up the economy. The third,
>Continued on pg 11

HERALD EXCLUSIVE

POWERFUL OMISSIONS

Finance Department’s observations
n
n
n
n

MoU signed without Cabinet approval
Contract signed even before coal block was
awarded to the State
Benchmark for financial parameters not known
Fixed only 10% of production by the power developer as the requirement with no guarantee of getting balance reserves

The Corporation thereafter invited Expression of
Interest seeking proposals to
shortlist a power developer
for setting up power projects.
However, at this point of

time the Corporation had no
mandate to undertake mining activity and it sought an
amendment to the object
clause of the Corporation to
>Continued on pg 11

2

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goa
SNAPSHOT
Batim teen dies in
cortalim mishap
A teenager from Gavekarwada-Batim in Tiswadi
died in a road mishap along the NH-17A road near
the Cortalim junction on Friday night.
According to Verna police, Sunny D'Sa (19) was
found dead along the roadside by a police patrol
jeep. A Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle (GA-07-D-9702) was
found in the bushes by the roadside.
It is learnt that the deceased had gone to meet
some friends near the Shantadurga temple at Sancaole and was retuning home when he met with an
accident.
Verna police has registered a case of unnatural
death and is investigating the case.

K’taka woman found dead
at Headland sada

A 45-year-old woman hailing from Bagalkot-Karnataka was found dead at the Japanese Garden at
Headland Sada, Mormugao on Saturday morning.
According to Mormugao police, the body of Kamla
Nagappa Kadlimatti, who was presently residing at
Jetty- Mormugao, was found hanging from a tree
with saree. The reason behind the death is unclear
and police has sent the body for an autopsy.

Human skeletal remains
dumped at colva

In a shocking incident, the skeletal remains of an
unknown person were found dumped in a gunny
bag at Fourth Ward, Colva on late Saturday evening.
Colva police led by PI Tushar Vernekar rushed to the
spot upon receiving a news from local activists and
immediately requisitioned the services of a police
dog to assist in the investigations.
PI Vernekar told Herald from the spot that the skeletal remains were found in the gunny bag recovered
from a low lying field. He said the human body was
fully decomposed and only the skeletal remains
have been found in the bag. He said the skeletal remains will be dispatched to the Hospicio hospital for
further investigations. The recovery of the remains
sent shock waves in the locality, with locals saying
the body of the human being might have been
dumped long ago as evident by the extent of decomposition.
The Colva police are investigating.

On January 22, some
Nigerians and locals of Arpora
and Calangute clashed
with each other at a
restaurant in Calangute.

DEAD BUT NOT BURIED
YEAR 1

February 18, 2009
It was one year since Scarlet died and the case
was still hopping between different sections of
Goa Police. The tale of desperate attempts to
destroy evidence and change in investigating
officers loomed large over this sensational
case that could have unmasked the drug
lobby in the state.
If not for a pair of chappals and undergarment that was left behind little away from Anjuna’s high tide line, the case would never
have been so much controversial.
A year ago her mother had undergarment
and pair of chappals, behind the bushes at
Luis Shack which raised the suspicion that
there was some activity preceding the death.
The mother walked with evidence to
Calangute Police Station where Police Sub Inspector Nerlon Albuquerque did not heed to
her requests.
It was only thereafter that the case was full
blown into controversy with the Indian lawyer
Vikram Varma coming to the rescue of British
mother. The investigation was of the case was
shoddy because police did not bother to collect proper evidences. There were also attempts to push the case under mat so that
image of tourist friendly Goa police is not shattered.
Exposure of her diaries and subsequent
claims of she being sex addict and drug addict
was used to let the alleged accused go scotfree.
Police threw rule book to the wind and
there was all possible attempts to hide things
from the media.
But what happened at the end is actually a
saga of shame for khakhi. During the first year
of investigation two locals – Samson D’Souza
and Placido Carvalho are arrested for drug-

ging, raping and leaving the teenager to die on
the beach.
YEAR 2
February 18, 2010
Two years had passed and the trial was yet
to begin in the case. The case was handed
over to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI),

Nigerians: NOT QUITE WELCOME

T

Eminent scientist and former
President of India Dr A P J
Abdul Kalam will speak
on ‘Imagination leads to
Creativity’ at 5 pm today.

February 18 will mark the third anniversary of British teenager Scarlet Keeling’s death. Her body still lies in possession of a British coroner, not buried. Her case too is far from being even close to completion. Vibha Verma looks at each of these years at a time to remind us
of how our justice system has stopped her mother from knowing who her daughter’s killers were

Over staying, drug trafficking, visa problems. Nigerians in Goa seem to be more in trouble than out of it. Thomas Fernandes investigates

hey have been arriving in the State
mainly for education
or vacation, but a growing
number of Nigerians have
ended up in a room of a different kind – the police
lockup.
Having grappled with
Kashmiri traders, Russians
and Israelis over the past
two decades, residents along
the
Calangute-Anjuna
coastal belt are now confronted with a new set of visitors,
the
Nigerian
community, and the interaction has not always been
pleasant.
The growing animosity
among the locals towards
the African tourists was exposed on January 22, when
some Nigerians and locals of
Arpora and Calangute
clashed with each other at a
restaurant in Calangute.
Despite this decline in
hospitality, Nigerians are
keen to stay in the State, so
much so that many are willing to risk overstaying in the
country without valid documents or, worse still, with
forged visas.
The desire of many of
these Nigerians to remain in
Goa despite the risks has led
many locals to question their
main intentions of visiting

“

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

the State.
On January 27, two Nigerians were arrested in separate
cases in connection with possessing drugs worth a combined Rs 34.5 lakh, revealing
the darker side of the Nigerian involvement in the drug
trade.
Herald then dug into its
archives and pulled out some
surprising statistics (see
chart). In Bardez taluka
alone, 43 Nigerians were arrested in 44 cases within
barely 16 months (October
2009 and January this year)
in the police stations at
Calangute, Anjuna and Mapusa, as well as by the Anti
Narcotics Cell. One Nigerian
was arrested twice, once each
by the ANC and by the
Calangute police.
Of those 44 cases, most
were booked by Calangute
police (23) and Anjuna police
(13), followed by Mapusa police (4), Porvorim police (2)
and ANC (2).
A majority of these cases
pertained to overstaying in
the country (31), followed by
drugs
trafficking
(9),
forged/fake visa (3) and escape from custody (1).
Incidentally, 19 of these
cases were booked in a single
month (April 2009), while
nine cases were registered in
October 2009.
The Calangute police had
booked all nine cases in Octo-

ber 2009. At that time, the police had suspected a fake Visa
racket involving the Nigerians, where the accused after
scanning the Visa, had cut
and paste it on the passport
to legalise the stay in the
country.
The frequency of arrests
involving Nigerians was such
that 25 of these 44 cases were
booked by the police within a
period of barely four months
(March 2010 and June 2010).
“I have arrested most of
the Nigerians either involved
in illegal drugs activity or
unauthorized stay in India.
Somehow, it makes me believe that they are more interested in the drug trade than
their studies or other legitimate activity,” said Anjuna
Police Inspector Manjunath
Dessai, who is also presently
heading the Calangute police
station.
The frequent brush with
the law enforcement agencies has also led to a decline
in public sympathy for the
Nigerian community.
A resident of Parra, who
incidentally, is a friend of a
Nigerian, said: “Most of these
Nigerians are in Goa only to
sell drugs and nothing else.
They are not here either to
study or on holidays as
tourists, but most are professional drug peddlers.”
Anjuna Sarpanch Lavino
Rebello also believes that

most Nigerians are directly
or indirectly involved in the
drug trade.
“I feel most of the Nigerians are directly or indirectly
involved in the drug trade.
However, I blame our own
Goans for renting out their
apartments or rooms to the
Nigerians, I am willing to lead
a campaign to drive away
those Nigerians indulging in
the drug trade,” Rebello
added.
On the other hand, not all
are willing to malign the entire Nigerian community as
drug pedlars. But even those
who believe that the Nigerians are being unfairly treated
would admit that authorities
need to keep a closer check
on their activities.
Says Calangute MLA Agnelo Fernandes: “We should
not crucify or harass each
and every Nigerian for sake
of others as there are a few
thorough gentlemen. However, the police should keep a
check on their activities as
they are the ones who are capable of saying who is involved in drug trade, etc. We
should be extra cautious
while blaming the Nigerians.”
When contacted, none of
the Nigerians were willing to
comment on reasons behind
the many arrests involving
the Nigerian community in
recent times.

claimed that the godown was empty.
“The total quantity of drugs in the godown
was sent for forensic tests at Central Forensic
Science Laboratory at Hyderabad after Crime
Branch officials conducted panchanama in
March-April 2010. How one can blame any police official,” a senior officer said on condition
of anonymity.

which still working on the tattered pieces of
evidences collected by Goa Police.
The superficial investigation and the time
gap had stalled the case. CBI officials got close
to filing the chargesheet, but the real issue of
drug trade flourishing on the coastal belt had
been left untouched.
Her body was dispatched to UK after con-

ducting two postmortems. Indian authorities
went to the extend of holding back her organs.
The British government castigated the government included the Chief Secretary.
All eyes were on the chargesheet and trial,
which would begin in Goa Children’s Court.
Two accused were already out on the bail.
The police had already filed a provisional
chargesheet. The CBI had to work to work
based on this provisional chargesheet.
February 18, 2011
Three years have passed. The chargesheet
has been filed. The CBI is investigating authority and counsel representing CBI has quit
the assignment sighting inordinate delay in
the trial.
S R Rivonkar, a lawyer, who represented the central agency till 15 witnesses were examined now feels that
there has been frequent change in the
judges and also there are obstructions
from the defence counsel. Rivonkar had
predicted that the trial in the case would
be end by December 2010 but things did
not work out. The dragging of the case
forced Rivonkar to quit.
Back in UK, the coroner is still working
on Scarlet’s corpse. Fiona has claimed that
the coroner has told her that he is having
evidences which are more and even contradictory to what CBI has presented in
the Court.
The trial has reached a stage where all the
policemen who saw Scarlet’s corpse on the
beach, Fiona and crucial witness Murli Sagar
stands testified. The cross examination has
also happened.
Curlie’s, a shack which shot in news after
her death, still remains a hotspot and was
even featured in a cover story of a national
news magazine as a regular place to pick up
drugs.

cORRiDORs Of POwER
Starting this week Suraj Nandrekar will do a weekly round-up of
political developments in the state called “Corridors of Power”.
His first is a look-back on the just concluded winter session of
the assembly
A naram winter session when garam was
promised.
All the talks of the “garam” Winter Session of the assembly have turned out to be
damp squib as the Digambar Kamat government having yet another smooth sailing
in the 5-day assembly session, which concluded yesterday, with not much coming in
from the Opposition.
Agreed, the Opposition did grill the government on several fronts including corruption in Public Works Department,
privatisation of Mapusa Hospital and to certain extent on illegal mining.
But there were several other burning issues which could have been taken up on priority. The BJP has always been talking
about the law and order situation and one
expected them to go all out against the government. But what have they done in the assembly on this front?
Agreed again, the home minister robbed
the opposition of any chance on grilling him
on the drugs issue by making an announcement that the case has already been handed
over to the Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI).
But the other issues like the increasing
police brutality by every passing day, the
Cipriano custodial death is one such many
cases which go unnoticed. Besides, there
are temple thefts, murders and rapes on
regular intervals besides the much bigger
police-politicians drugs nexus.
But the Opposition failed to highlight the issue.
What was more shocking was the BJP
leaders did not even react to the allegations
made by Naik. Just before the assembly session the Home Minister Ravi Naik had
made a scathing attack against the Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar that the
drugs trade flourished under him and he
had links with drug dealer called Roy Fernandes and one Vaingankar.
If one may recall the proceeding in the assembly, none of the BJP leaders spoke on
the issue at large there may have been some
passing statement but none taken up seriously.
Parrikar too reacted very late on the allegations when one expected him to take the
House by storm.
The BJP could have at least made an at-

tempt by moving an adjournment motion
over the developments on Home front…
For many, the opposition to the government came from within the ruling party –
Aldona legislator Dayanand Narvekar and
to some extent Mauvin Godinho.
A jilted Narvekar, who was unceremoniously dropped as finance minister to make
way for Babush Monserrate in 2008, took
the government head one on several issues
be it Home, mining, education etc.
Besides, he surprised one an all when he
moved an adjournment motion. He was
later pacified by the colleagues following,
which he withdrew the motion.
But Mauvin’s assurance to corner the
home minister in the assembly fell flat and
he hardly raised the issue of any significance
apart from the Special Status to Goa.
Although Mauvin did not say much himself he made one statement which could
hurt the opposition badly.
Participating in the discussion on the
Governor’s address Mauvin said “I don’t
know why the opposition is keeping quite
on several burning issues…may be some of
their works are also being done by the government.”
For chief minister Kamat, this session was
business as usual - making several assurances in the House, which all know will
never be kept up by him or his government.
All in all it was a smooth sailing for
Kamat, who had put gag orders on his legislators on speaking against the government.

3

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www.oheraldo.in

goa

“

When ‘Satyam’ (truth) loses its
meaning, when ‘Adarsh’
(ideal) loses its meaning; we
need to do something
about it. – R A Mashelkar

face-off
Health Minister Vishwajeet Rane, is a bit of a maverick in the preset ways of government functioning. Faced with a strong attack
from his own party strongman Dayanand Narvekar for alleged irregularities in the PP model adopted for the North Goa district hospital, the Junior Rane says he has been completely transparent.
But has “distanced” himself from the controversy, in an interview
with Sujay Gupta

‘I HAVE BEEN TRANSPARENT’
I report only to the Congress high
command and keep the CM informed

Herald: Let’s get to the
point straight away. Why
wasn’t the request for Qualification for the north Goa
district hospital vetted by
the Finance and the Law
departments?
Vishwajeet rane: The file
was brought to me. It is clear
that the RFQ was only an Expression of Interest. When it
reaches the RFP (Request)
stage the finance and law department comes. Anyway
since the RFQ stands lapsed
because of there was only one
party, it will begin all over
again but I’m directly out of
it. The finance and law secretaries and director PPP will
handle it and I have been
briefed that a committee consisting of them will float an
RFP which will cut down the
time of processing.

Herald: But dayanand
narvekar and others have
accused you of doing privatisation under the garb of
PPP
rane: Let me explain. I am
talking of a model of cross subsidy. The Asilo Hospital is currently subsidised by the
government. The same subsidy will be available for the
North Goa district hospital for
190 beds. The rest of the beds
will be for high specialty treatment for paying patients. With
high quality health care at
their doorstep referral cases
will not go out of the state. The
revenue earned from this high
specialty care will be used by
the private player to take care
of their operations.
Herald: But why isn’t
there enough confidence in
the PPP model?

rane: I have been transparent. The entire process
has been and will be clear to
all. I have decided to do the
best for health care and am
proud of the fact that facilities in GMC are state-of-theart. In the PPP model, we
will give opportunities to
doctors of Goan origin to return to their home land and
practice. Our local doctors,
whom are second t none will
be able to interact with the
best from outside who will
work here.
Herald: What is so special
about novo nortis that you
have been backing them?
rane: They are not just a
company which makes insulin. They have an education
and training programme
which will train aganwadi
workers so that administering
of insulin becomes easy. Detection and treatment will ensure that cases of diabetes
come down.
Herald: Getting to politics, are you a Congressman
or are you your own man.
Will the seven constituencies under your belt be delivered to the Congress from
your side?
rane: I have taken permissions fro the high command to work in these areas.
The high command monitors my progress. I keep the
Chief Minister informed. I
have got permission to work
in Siolim by the high command. I am a party man and
always.

Ashok to lead BJP-backed
panel for CCP polls
HeRaLD RePoRTeR
PANJIM, FEB 5: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)supported panel was unveiled today which
will contest the forthcoming Corporation of
the City of Panaji (CCP) elections under the
leadership of Ashok Naik, who is projected as
a Mayor candidate.
Leader of Opposition and Panjim legislator
Manohar Parrikar announced the candidates
for 25 out of 30 wards while rest names would
be finalised and disclosed on Tuesday. The list
does not include names for Ward Nos 18, 20,
21, 26 and 30.
The panel ‘Panaji First – Council for Clean
Governance’ is full of surprises with hardly
three faces repeated.
Parrikar claimed that few corporators
opted out while reservations of certain wards
made them to have fresh faces.
Addressing a convention of BJP workers at
Gomant Maratha hall in Panjim, Parrikar said
that the candidates are selected after extensive consultation process. He said that the
consultation is on in five wards where the candidates would be announced on Tuesday.
Rupesh Halarnkar, Vaidehi Naik and Diksha
Mayenkar are the repeat faces in the panel.
Vaidehi Naik, who got elected from ward number 12 last time, will be locking horns with the
male candidates as her ward was not reserved.
“When we sat for the consultation in ward
number 12, everyone suggested Vaidehi’s
name,” Parrikar said while introducing her
during the convention.
Former Cortalim legislator Matanhy Saldanha, who supported then Parrikar-led government, has also come in support of BJP-led
panel this time. Saldanha was personally
present for the convention and was seated
amongst the candidates and BJP leaders on
the dais.
Parrikar said that Ashok Naik has been
projected as Mayor candidate because he had

provided clean and efficient governance during his last tenure.
Addressing the gathering, Naik said that
Panjim deserves better and residents of this
place know it.
“We have an unyielding desire to improve
the lives of the average Panjim resident, no
matter how difficult the fight may be,” Ashok
Naik said adding that ‘clean governance,
transparency at all levels; honesty will be our
hall marks.
He said that like minded, honest citizens
have come together to offer a fresh chance to
partner with every Panjim resident. “We are
not governed by ulterior sense of accomplishment or an outside agency to further own
goals,” Naik said.

Aldona MLA Dayanand Narvekar has taken to the streets to oppose what he calls the “privatisation” of the district hospital at Mapusa. In a no holds barred opposition to the project Narvekar tells
Franky Gracias that the project is a scam.

‘Public will riot over PPP’

I am in opposition in my own party. Will
decide on new political direction
position because the Congress
party has treated me shabbily
in the last three years.
Herald: there are talks
and rumours you are floating a new party.
narvekar: (Doesn’t deny the
same and laughs). In the last three
years of my political career I have
been sidelined by my party. I kept a
low profile. In spite of that my call for
the Mapusa meeting to oppose PPP
was enormous and the same surprised me. Now I will call for a convention in South Goa in April as I
have supporters even in the South.
After the response to this convention
things will be known and a new direction may emerge.

Herald: You have been
adamant in stopping the
PPP initiative for the district hospital in Mapusa.
dayanand narvekar: I am not
going to compromise at any level
as far as PPP in Goa’s health sector is concerned. It is a foremost
constitutional obligation of the
Government to provide health
and education to its people.
Herald: How will you stop
the Health Minister?
narvekar: The public will stop
the private people from entering
the hospital. Mark my words there
will be a riot if a move is made in
this regard. Most of the people
from Bardez are agitated and will
not take things lying down. Thousands will come and squat on the
streets because this is a big scam.
Herald: You stated during
the Winter session the
Health Minister has already
struck a deal with Fortis for
the privatisation. Can you
elaborate?
narvekar: I don’t want to
comment on this. I will speak

at the right time.
Herald: What is the genesis of your whole agitation
against PPP? Why don’t you
want a model private hospital to come up?
narvekar: Here the interest
is only money. In 2007 Vishwajeet Rane asked for the portfolio.
Today major chunk of employees in the State’s health sector
are from Sattari, Valpoi and
Sanquelim. The 108 Emergency
Service is in bad shape as the
ambulances have become old.
Herald: recently you
have been raising a lot of issues of corruption. the fact
is you are also part of this
Government, which is facing several corruption
charges.
narvekar: In 35 years of my
political career there has
never been a vigilance inquiry
against me nor an income tax
raid. I have never heard of
concrete criticism against me,
but there have been passing
remarks. I am virtually in op-

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

Candidates are selected after
extensive consultation
process, which is on in 5
wards where they would be
announced on Tuesday.
– Manohar Parrikar

4

“

www.oheraldo.in

north

goa

Do not throw garbage in the forest as it is
observed that some people take for
granted that the forest is a site for dumping garbage or waste.
— Dr Kumar

“

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

On the one hand, the minister
claims he is encouraging agriculture
with new schemes, but on the other
he is helping the mining lobby to destroy it.
— Activist

Workers treat garbage at Penha-de-Franca village.
ANIL SHANKHWALKER
PORVORIM, FEB 5: While many panchayats and municipal councils in the State
face various obstacles in attempts to manage
garbage, the Penha-de-Franca Panchayat
seems to have found some solution to the
garbage problem.
The Penha-de-Franca Panchayat was
forced to resolve the garbage problem in the
village, after a bitter experience with its
neighbouring panchayat.
The Serula Communidade had earlier
granted permission to the Penha-de-Franca
Panchayat to dump its garbage on the Socorro plateau a few years ago for a fee of Rs
5,000 per month.

Photo by Anil Shankhwalker

by the panchayat,” said Narvekar.
“Since the pilot project became successful,
Aldona MLA Dayanand Narveker asked the
panchayat to prepare a project under Rural
Disposal Garbage schemes 2005 and 2007 of
the State Government for collection and disposal of garbage of 14 wards, which includes
seven wards of Penha-de-Franca, three
wards of Salvador-do-Mundo and four wards
of Socorro Panchayat.”
“All these wards fall on Porvorim Plateau.
The project report is in final stages and once
it is ready, it will be submitted to the government for approval through Aldona MLA
Narvekar,” added Narvekar.
“The contract of garbage treatment collected from these 14 wards will be entrusted

BICHOLIM, FEB 5: A little known village in Bicholim
taluka has been fighting a
lone battle against a mining
company since the past four
years, in a desperate bid to
save the village from imminent destruction.
Residents of Vathadev-Bicholim are up in arms
against a proposed mine in
the village, but their resolute
opposition against their
enemy is now being put to
the test by politicians and
money power.
It may be recalled that the
news of the proposed mine
at Vathadev first hit the
taluka in December 2006.
This had sparked off strong
opposition among villagers
as well as from residents of
Bicholim taluka.
On January 18, 2007, a
public hearing was convened at Sanquelim and locals attended it in large
number shouting anti-mining slogans. This forced authorities to postpone the
hearing on "technical
grounds".
Mine
representatives
were unable to submit the
required documents and so
the hearing was postponed
to March 24.
On the proposed day, the
hearing was held in the village and taking into consideration strong opposition to
the project, a police force
was deployed at the site.
The public hearing proved

Machinery and construction activity at the proposed mining site at Vathadev-Bicholim.
Photo by Samir Umarye
historic, as people attended
in large numbers and all
voiced their opposition to the
proposed project.
An assurance was given to
the public that their say
would be communicated to
the government and the
project would be stalled if it
is against public interest.
But surprisingly without
considering the public hearing, the mining lobby got the
required sanctions from the
Central government.
In the meantime, the locals formed Vathadev Nagrik Kruti Samiti and
continued with the protest.
Incidentally, workers from
a company also participated
in one of the rallies as the
mining company had proposed shifting of the company to another location.
Since then, the company
has tried several means to
woo the villagers. Money

power was used to split the
villagers and some even succumbed to these techniques
of the company.
Now after about four
years, the controversy has
again raised its ugly head.
The matter came to light
when the locals noticed that
the company had started
cutting down some rare
trees and clearing the area.
To add to this, the company also built a concrete
shed and is slowly in a
process of getting heavy machinery at the proposed site.
When this correspondent
went to the site, there were
three earth-moving vehicles
stationed at the site with two
security guards posted
round the clock.
“The matter is still in the
court and the mining company has started with its
work, which is against the
law,”
environmentalist

Ramesh Gawas told Herald.
“The NOC that the mining
company had taken from the
Pollution Control Board has
also expired and the work is
still going on in full swing,”
added Gawas.
“The Tillari canal passes
through the area and construction work is very close
to the canal. Huge piles of
mud have been dumped
near the canal, which could
pose a major problem for the
canal,” he said.
“The trees cleared by the
mining were some of the
rare trees and as per the
rule, they cannot cut such
age-old trees, which are important for the ecosystem,”
added Gawas.
According to the locals, a
minister is supporting the
mining company.
“On the one hand, the
minister claims he is encouraging agriculture with new

schemes, but on the other he
is helping the mining lobby
to destroy it,” alleged
Vathadev Nagrik Kruti
Samiti President Pramod
Umarye.
If the mine comes up in
the area, wells in the area
would not only dry, but it
would directly affect the Bicholim river as the proposed
mine is close to the river.
The Kulagars, which are
extended to about 1 lakh sq
mtrs, would be the first to
feel the heat of this mine.
The Tilari canal also passes
through the proposed mining area, due to which it
would also be severely affected.
In 2009, the government
had spent about Rs 9 crore
for de-silting the Bicholim
river and all this would be
gross waste of public funds if
mining comes up at
Vathadev. This is because
during the monsoon, water
along with the silt would directly flow into the Bicholim
river.
Despite this, the government has turned a nelson’s
eye towards the issue. The
mining company has succeeded in getting the required sanctions from the
Central government.
But all hopes are not lost
for the protesting villagers of
Vathadev as the mining
company is yet to get an
NOC from the District collector, who is also the chairman of the Disaster
Management.

Valpoi down in dumps for want of a dump site
ASHRAF KHAN

However, the Socorro Panchayat raised an
objection to the dumping of garbage by
Penha-de-Franca Panchayat on the Socorro
plateau and even lodged a complaint with
Mapusa Police in this regard.
The Penha-de-Franca Panchayat was
forced to find an alternate site to dump the
garbage.
Since the garbage problem is getting severe day-by-day, the Penha-de-Franca Panchayat decided to take some steps to tackle
garbage problem in a scientific way, particularly of wards on Porvorim Plateau.
Speaking to Herald, Sarpanch Eknath
Narvekar said most of the garbage is generated in Wards 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, which are located on the Porvorim Plateau.
“Therefore, the panchayat decided to entrust the job of garbage collection and its
treatment scientifically to Lila Trust. Accordingly, after the discussions with Lila Trust,
the panchayat constructed five vermin-composting pits in Ward 8 in 2009 by spending Rs
5.78 lakh,” informed the sarpanch.
As per the contract, the contractor collects
and disposes off the garbage from the entire
Penha-de-France area thrice a week and is
paid Rs 50,000 per month for the services.
“Lila Trust set up the Green Shed for Sustainable Solid Waste Management in one of
the corners of the garden at Porvorim and installed its machinery for conversion of
biodegradable garbage into manure,” he
added.
“Lila Trust started collecting wet garbage
from houses in Ward 8 and dumped organic
waste into these pits to convert it into manure. Every household is being charged a
nominal fee of Re 1 for this service rendered

to Fomento. The panchayat has already earmarked an area of abut 3,500 sq mtrs to set
up a Green Shed for the installation of the required machinery for the treatment of
garbage by Fomento,” he said.
Lila Digital and Environmental Solutions
Pvt Ltd Director Pradeep Sarmokadam
stated that Lila Trust initially took up the
pilot project of garbage treatment of Ward 8
of Penha-de-Franca.
“The staff employed by us collected
garbage from 500 houses by visiting houseto-house everyday. The wet garbage was
dumped in the pits of the area and the remaining garbage was brought to the Green
shed,” said Sarmokadam.
“In the Green Shed, our staff segregated
the biodegradable garbage and the remaining garbage is being sent for recycling.
Biodegradable garbage is converted into bioorganic fertilizer, which is rich in biological
micro flora which enhances the soil fertility,”
explained Sarmokadam.
Sarmokadam further said after completion of
one year, the project was taken over by Fomento
from Lila Trust and the former appointed Lila
Digital and Environmental Solutions Pvt Ltd as
its operators and managers.
“Since this pilot project has become successful, Aldona MLA Narveker has directed
Penha-de-Franca panchayat to prepare a detailed project report under Rural Garbage
scheme for the treatment of garbage of 14
wards,” he said.
“This project if approved by the government and entrusted to us, we propose to treat
garbage of 14 wards by both ways, bio-composting and methanation processes, to ensure complete success,” said Sarmokadam.

VALPOI, FEB 5: The Valpoi Municipal Council (VMC) is down in the
dumps for want of a dump, or at least
one that is acceptable to the public.
The VMC has been hit by various
obstacles in its quest to set up a
garbage dumping site in the municipality. All dumping sites identified
by VMC from time to time have been
futile, as residents have opposed
these sites for varied reasons.
The VMC is desperate to address
the issue as 2 tonnes of garbage is
generated in Valpoi each day, while
about 4 tonnes is generated on the
Valpoi Bazaar day every Tuesday.
The latest site at Ward 7, which has
been identified by VMC after acquiring a large portion of government
land, has also proved controversial.
Fearing that the proposed site may
create a situation similar to that of
the infamous Sonsoddo plant at
Margao, residents have decided to
oppose the proposed garbage treatment plant tooth and nail.
The villagers have claimed that
they have been getting overwhelming support from various NGOs to
oppose the proposed garbage treatment plant.
As soon as VMC indicated its intention to set up a garbage treatment
plant in Ward 7 (Sayyad Nagar and
surrounding areas), residents on
those areas were quick to raise their
objection.
About 80 families residing at
Sayyad Nagar dashed off a memorandum to Sattari Mamlatdar Satish
Dessai, complaining that the entire
area would be affected if a project is
set up in the area.
The aggrieved residents also argued that existing wells in the village
will be polluted, as the proposed
plant is few metres away from their
residential area.
They pointed out that the Kabrastaan (burial ground) is located a few
metres from the proposed site as well
as the government hospital, which is
coming up adjacent to the Community Health Centre, Valpoi.
Villagers regularly conduct meetings to prepare themselves to oppose

Residents of Ward 7 VMC submit a memorandum to Sattari Mamlatdar Satish Dessai. Photo by Ashraf Khan
the project for once and all. While are
not opposed to the project in
essence, they are unhappy that the
VMC is planning garbage dumping
sites close to residential areas.
Left with little option, the VMC decided to use a pit to dump garbage
collected from all 10 wards.
This, too, was met with sever opposition as residents complained
that the site is just 200 metres from
the residential areas. They also
stated that VMC garbage trucks
were using the village road, posing a
threat to other motorists.
Residents then blocked garbage
trucks from entering residential
areas, forcing the VMC to stop
dumping garbage at the pit.
When contacted, Ward 7 Councillor Faimida Khan, who is incidentally vice-chairperson of VMC, told
Herald that she is backing the people
of her ward and will also oppose the
project. “People have elected me as
their representative and naturally I
have to be with them,” informed
Faimida.
When contacted, VMC Chairperson Umesh Gulelkar pointed out
that VMC was earlier dumping
garbage at Rede-Ghat in the past.
"But the area fell under the Mauxi
Panchayat and the Mauxi Panchayat
objected to this activity. As such, the
VMC stopped dumping garbage
there," Gulelkar said.

"The garbage was then dumped in
a private property at Nanus. However, this was also stopped when villagers strongly opposed the move by
stopping garbage trucks."
"With no option left, we started
dumping garbage in the municipal
council-owned area behind the
council building. But unfortunately,
this site is also presently overflowing
with garbage and now, we cannot
dump more garbage there,” said
Gulelkar. Gulelkar admitted that a
large portion of government land has
been acquired by VMC in Ward 7 to
set up a garbage treatment plant.
"The access road to the site needs
to be constructed through land belonging to the Forest department.
The VMC is now awaiting an NOC
from the forest department."
"Since it is a long procedure to obtain an NOC from the forest department, we have temporarily dug a pit
in the acquired land to dump the
garbage."
"But we were forced to stop dumping garbage there after residents opposed the site and stopped garbage
trucks from using the village road,”
admitted Gulelkar.
Gulelkar informed that the VMC
is working hard to find a solution to
the problem.
“VMC has stopped collecting
garbage these days for want of a suitable site,” said the chairperson.

Forest is not a site
for dumping garbage

ASHRAF KHAN
VALPOI, FEB 5: They may be opposing garbage dumping sites, but
Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Dr Shashi Kumar IFS
has warned people not to dump
garbage or waste in the forest.
"Do not throw garbage in the forest
as it is observed that some people
take for granted that the forest is a
site for dumping garbage or waste,"
remarked Dr Kumar.
Addressing the recent convocation
ceremony of the 30th batch of forest
guards at Valpoi Forest Training
School at Valpoi, Dr Kumar asked
forest officials to keep an eye on
garbage-dumping activities in the
forest areas.
"Forest officials should strictly
monitor the situation where such
practice is being carried out by some
people," he said.
He also advised the public to take
care of the environment in their
areas.
"Use pollution-free materials such
as jute or paper bags instead of polythene or plastic bags. Do not harm
the environment and do not indulge
in such activities which give rise to
global warming," said Dr Kumar.

Health camp organised
CURCHOREM: Quepem Taluka Women Self-Help
Group in association with NUSI Wockhart Hospital
recently organised a health camp for the women at
Ravindra Bhavan Hall Curchorem.
Over 600 women participated in the camp. Dr
Madhav Sanzgiri (urologist), Dr Rohit Modi (cardiologist) and Dr Mudit Khanna (orthopedic surgeon)
apprised about sickness, cures and preventions in
respect of their streams.
The camp was inaugurated by social worker Nilesh
Cabral, ex-director of Handicrafts Department. Former CCMC councilor Felix Fernandes, Amrut Naik,
Rita Prabhu, Priyanka Dessai and Self Help Group
President Kamat were present on the occasion.

ICFAI charity drive
PANJIM: Keeping in mind social responsibility,
ICFAI Flexi Education (IFEN) Panjim branch along
with ICFAI students, distributed gifts to children
and elderly people of Missionaries of Charity
Mother Teresa's Home in Panjim recently.
Damodar Parab, Branch Manager, IFEN interacted
with them and guided them regarding new career
options and education. On this occasion Mamta
Verma, Valiny Pereira, Manoj Gupta, Sonal Talaulicar of IFEN and staff of Missionaries of Charity
Mother Teresa's Home were present.

Sarojini elected CCC president
PANJIM: Sarojini Sardinha was unanimously elected
the President of Curtorim Cultural Committee (CCC) for the
year 2011 at a meeting of members at Curtorim Panchayat Hall,
recently. The following other
members of the committee were
also elected: Xavier Vaz (Vice
President), Terrancio Fernandes
(Gen Secretary), Roque Mascarenhas (Treasurer), Irish Viegas (Org Secretary),
Angelo Dias (Co-ordinator). Curtorim Cultural Committee, which is in its fifth year of existence, organises talent search competitions in singing, dancing,
acting etc, in association with Department of Art
and Culture, and also a grand Carnival Float parade
from Maina to Curtorim Market every year.
This year, the Curtorim Cultural Committee will organise the Carnival for three days on the March 6, 7
and 8.
PANJIM: Gerry Pinto (Gerald Jacob Pinto), a resident
of New Delhi passed away after fighting a critical
health condition. Gerry was a child rights practitioner, former Project Officer of UNICEF. His association with Goa and with Children’s Rights in Goa
(CRG) was through a unique initiative by him in partnership with Prof Murli Desai (an academician) towards an initiative to mainstream child rights
training through the Goa Initiative for Mainstreaming of Child Rights (GIMCR).

Panjim, Feb 5: State Hindu
organisations - Bajarang Dal
(BD) and Vishwa Hindu
Parishad (VHP) today
claimed that their South Goa
based leader Jayesh Naik has
been victimised by police by
linking him with the murder
of a labourer from Karnataka.
Jayesh Naik and his
brother Rajesh surrendered
before the Judicial Magistrate First Class in Margao on
February 3 after which
Maina Curtorim police arrested them.
The brothers are prosecuted in connection with the
murder of Sultan Bellary,
whose headless body was
found at Nessai in South
Goa.
Briefing media in the city
today, BD’s Goa convener
Sharad Birajdar said that
Jayesh is falsely implicated in
the case as he has been opposing several anti-social elements in Margao who had
terrified the locals.
“Police are targeting him
because he had taken antisocials head on, who were enjoying police protection,” he
said.
VHP’s Konkan region joint
secretary Dipak Gayakwad
alleged that Police Inspector
Siddhant Shirodkar was selectively leaking the case in-

seven persons came to and a Swift D’zire and took
so that Jayesh’s name is ma- Pedda-Benaulim in two vehi- away the deceased Sultan
ligned. He demanded the in- cles, including a Maruti van Bellary.
spector’s transfer from the
present place of posting.
“This is an attack against
Hindu leader. Police have
framed him in the case,”
Gayakwad said. He said that
they have full faith in the judiciary.
The two brothers are remanded to 10 days police
custody for custodial interrogations in order to identify
their role in the commission
of offence, locate the absconding associates, recover
the missing head of the deceased and also to recover
the weapon used in the commission of the crime.
After his arrest, Goa•America•Heart•Foundation•
Jayesh president of the Shri Swami
Samarth Temple, Rumdamol
had told waiting newsmen
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that he is innocent
and J&KE!
will
come out clean and that this
is yet another!?!(-!/-&
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by the police to frame him up
in a false case. M$&',!03 ME$+',!0 7 @!)$+,!0
The police have said that
investigations have revealed
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that Jayesh was in constant
contact with his associates
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who are suspects
in this
crime before and after the
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commission of offence
as evident from their contacts, call
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Police investigations further revealed that on the
night of January 9-10, around

Panjim, Feb 5: Giving a touch of modernity, the 2011 census will also enumerate
third sex.
“For 2011 census, special efforts are
made for gender sensitization of data. In
the column of gender, along with male
and female, there will be yet another column specifying other sex, for those who
are neither male nor female,” Director of
Census Operations, Goa A K Wasnik
said adding that for the first time the op-

2011 census
records 60,000
more households
HERALD REPORTER
Panjim, Feb 5: After recording 15 percent rise in population during last census, the
2011 census has already
recorded 60,000 more households in the state indicating
that the population is likely to
swing upward.
The census operation officials have said that 60,000
new households have been
added to Goa taking the total
number to 3.51 lakh households.
“The first phase of the
decadal census in the form of
house listing, which was done
in April 2010 has recorded
nearly 60,000 new households taking the total number
to 3.51 lakh households in
Goa,” Director of Census Operations, Goa A K Wasnik
told reporters today morning.
He said that rise in number
of households indicates that
more nuclear families are
taking shape in the State coupled with the migration from
the neighbouring States.
“Within one bungalow there
are several nuclear families
living,” Wasnik said.

As per 2001 census, Goa’s
population was 13,47,668
which was 15.21 per cent
more than 1991 census.
Wasnik informed that the
second phase of 2011 census
which comes as population
enumeration will begin in
Goa from February 9 to February 28.
“During the first phase we
identified buildings, census
houses and households across
the state. Useful data on the
amenities available to the
households as well as asserts
owned were collected,” the official said adding that the revision round will be carried out
from March 1 to March 5, 2011
during which updating on
birth and deaths will be done.
The director said that the
actual data will be out to the
public in next one-two years.
Wasnik said that 3,054 enumerators, 500 supervisors
and 10 percent reserve staff
would be on their toes to collect data from across the state
by visiting households.
When asked, the director
said that the officials will try
their best to avoid any duplication in names.

Census enumerates third sex too
HERALD REPORTER

“

For 2011 census, special efforts are made
for gender sensitization of data. In the column of gender, along with male and female, there will be yet another column
specifying other sex, for those who are nei- A K Wasnik
ther male nor female.

tion called ‘other sex’ is added. However,
he said that there is no provision to
record live-in relationship.
As per the data, the post-enumeration survey of census 2001 for India
has shown that while there was no
gender bias in coverage, the overall
omission rate was 23.3 per thousand
persons, which is higher than that in
1991.
“As such, 2011 census will ensure
complete coverage without omission or
duplication,” director said.

“As per last census India has 1.2 percent disabled people, but actual number
can be more as people tend to hide
about disability,” he said adding that
proper data can help the government
provide better facilities for the disabled
people.
Besides the usual information, the
census operation will also collect data
about the age at the time of marriage,
distance commuted by person from his
house to the place of work, mode of
transportation and fertility rate.

Why is Ravi Naik compelled to let a man
called Gudlar roam free, when the very
same SIT has sufficient grounds to file a
case because he stole drugs from the
ANC godown?
— Sujay Gupta

Why don’t I understand
the Home Minister

T

anohar Parrikar today visited Margao and summarily
rejected Churchill Alemaos proposal to have an opinion
poll on corruption in the PWD. Both developments
happened within two hours of each other. Churchill playing to the
galleries, wanted to go to the people for a verdict to be passed if he
is corrupt. Parrikar meanwhile wanted a detailed commission of
inquiry. While the first is laughable, the second isn’t practical. Asking Churchill’s people who he has showered largesse to tell if he is
corrupt is to ask children if their regular candy supplier is a good
man. While there has been no inquiry or hard proof to nail the
PWD minister, Churchill is no Ceasar’s wife. The general buzz of
huge kickbacks on every PWD contract, the presence of a young
“social worker”, as the official “collection agent” of the minister,
the free hand that Churchill has given to this social worker so
much so that no contract is signed without a call from her, is getting stronger.
Winds blowing from Varca tell a tale on a daily basis. The latest
being that money is charged even from people in the constituency
for jobs of meter readers in the department . In a private gathering last week one senior minister from South Goa was telling another minister from a neighbouring constituency “ You are
making so much money. Even if you give me 25% of what you
make, I’ll live like a king for the rest of my life”
Hence, to trivialize the issue of corruption in the PWD and calling for an opinion poll to settle the issue is huge insult to one of
the finest and honourable exercises undertaken by every true
Goan to determine his or her future. Goan’s voted for an independent identity based on their culture and language. It retained
in uniqueness through an overwhelming exercise of a franchise
which to this day every living Goan who went through that wonderful experience remembers fondly.
Does Churchill Alemao even know and respect the Late Shabu
Desai, one of the heroes of the opinion poll whose statue was only
now unveiled at the old bus stand ?
Does Churchill follow the principles of Jack de Sequeira, who
believed that as trustees and not owners of this beautiful land, it is
the moral duty of every Goan to preserve and pass on the land
and identity that ancestors cultivated, to our children? Jack Sequeira did not live to see that day when the identity of Goas polity
would be tainted with wide spread corruption. Lucky him.
Hence to even casually talk about an Opinion poll to determine
corruption will be treated with the contempt it deserves.
Manohar Parrikar did speak of a commission of inquiry to determine corruption. This isn’t practical because how will a commission of inquiry go. And to what extent will it go to. This is a
cancer growth of huge proportions. At every desk on every government department there is a stench of corruption from the police to the secretariat and to the constituencies. Land for projects
is allotted on who pays the most and not according to what the
land is allotted for. We are not missing just a point. We are missing
the whole context. Our very core has been corrupted and it’s become a part of our lives. This isn’t about inquiries and investigations any more. It’s about us.

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ith a new look comes new elements – little differences
aimed at brightening up the weekend. Apart from the
special stories, in depth analysis on pertinent news of the
week gone by and exciting visuals from Goa, India and the world,
Herald Weekend has more in store for you…
Every weekend, the team takes a closer look at Goa from a few
different angles, with interviews, special focus features and highlighting people who have and who could make a difference. There
will be human interest stories of a different kind, people who innovate, create and progress without any outside help. Every Sunday,
Herald will look at issues plaguing Goa, street food worth writing
about, departmental woes that you readers have and a little bit of
culture when we can
As Goa’s people’s paper we have realized that apart from the people within Goa, there is an avid readership due to the multitude of
Goans across the world. In this day, when email ids can take a backseat due to the faster and more interactive communication channels
set up via social networks, we thought it would only be fair to set up
a network of our own.
We will now carry opinions, excerpts of discussions and will also
be able to get feedback and report due to our facebook page, which
is the new portal of the new Goa. Apart from our stellar team of reporters, we now have the eyes and ears of the entire state to work
with. Keep in touch, post, refute and more, do what you love doing
– communicate. Let us work together to better this state that we call
home. Let us be the change we want to see, in the words of one of
the world’s famous freedom fighter. Viva!

FinD uS on Facebook – Facebook.com/heralDweekenD

Lisbon is Panjim enhanced. It
is also, the possibility of what
Panjim and Goa can be, if we
can get our act together
– Jason Keith Fernandes

FLY ON THE WALL

his is a deep rooted predicament that has resurfaced
again. A predicament that I
thought I had left behind in
Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh and Bihar, different and interesting parking spots in my journalistic
journey. I’ve always had problems with
them and since most of them were
Chief Ministers or Governors (during
Presidents rule) who doubled as Home
Ministers, my discomfort only doubled.
Simply put, I’ve scarcely been at
Home with them. All of them, with chilling consistency continue to act against
the powerless, or worse still give free licence to their governments and police
to run a system of the powerful against
the powerless.
Not only has Home Minister Ravi
Naik has lived up to his counterparts in
other parts of the country but has surpassed them to an extent which is chilling and fearful. Looking back,
Sunderlal Patwa (CM and Home Minister Madhya Pradesh in 1992), KV Krishna Rao, Governor of Jammu and
Kashmir in 1994/95 and Mulayam
Singh Yadav (who wasn’t the chief Minister between 1995 and 1997 but ruled
the government by proxy with Governor Romesh Bhandari doing his bidding openly), have at time tacitly done
nothing when human rights violations
have started in the face. And yet when
anyone dared to fight back, double
doses of pressure and threats followed.
In 1994, on a cold dark evening in Sopore, a Kashmiri mother told me gruesome stories of how the armed soldiers
had repeatedly come to their village
and beat men and raped young girls.
Such was their fear that they embraced
militants with open arms and made
them lie next to their teenaged daughters to protect them from uniformed
rapists. When a group of journalists
wrote a series of stories, we suddenly
found that taxi drivers refused to carry
us, hotels refused to let us in and we
were told in very clear terms to leave
Kashmir.
Sunderlal Patwaa BJP CM, was
more subtle but effective. His director

M

“

Vol. No CXI No. 37 I Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

www.oheraldo.in

SuJay Gupta
General of Police KPS Rathore, an RSS
man who wore a police uniform of the
same colour, , came down heavily when
journalists of national dailies posted in
Bhopal wrote how the state police stood
and watched as members of the Sangh
Parivaar ran amuck in minority areas
of old Bhopal after the Babri Masjid
demolitions. From open threats of harm
to phone calls and letters to our editors
in Delhi and Calcutta, we saw and
heard it all.
In UP though, these niceties were
avoided. A well known carpet manufacturer in Bhadoi, near Varanasi had
burnt alive a minor child worker in his
carpet factory. I happened to be in
Bhadoi on a different assignment and
got onto this story and did a series on
the incident for my paper The Telegraph. A month later the police arrived
at my Lucknow home with an arrest
warrant. The charge? Not responding
to three consecutive summons for an
appearance in the criminal defamation
case filed by the carpet manufacturer.
There was an unusual flurry of activity
to whisk me away to the Additional District and Sessions Judges court in
Varanasi so that the carpet manufacturer could begin his quest for justice
for being defamed by a lowly reporter
who had penetrated his citadel of crime.
I avoided the immediate arrest but did
have to land in the Varanasi. Promptly
upon landing I received calls on my
hotel room number from the District
magistrate and SP to “compromise”,
for my own good. I did not and managed to get bail because of the intervention of the higher judiciary. Two people
who were shocked and unhappy at this
unfortunate development were the
carper manufacturer and Mulayam
Singh Yadav who wanted to teach this
Bengali in bhaiya land, a lesson.
But you know what? So many years

later I can still look back and pass these
incidents as an offshoot of compulsions
of politicians. Governor Krishna Rao
had no time to address human rights violations of the army when militants
were kidnapping, capturing and killing
at every bend on the hills, Sunderlal
Patwa was merely being “nationalistic”
because his parivaar had pulled down
the masjid and cleansed Ayodhya and
Mulayam Singh Yadav and Romesh
Bandari were merely being good
friends to a man who generously
funded the Samajwadi party coffers.
But what compulsions does Ravi
Naik have? Why is he compelled to initiate another inquiry by the SIT on the
Cipriano custodial death case when he
knows that the SDM and the Dy SP
probing the case are sure of procedural
and gross human rights violations of the
Panjim police. He described Cipriano as
a “chronic alcoholic with a “heavy mental disorder” and a “dangerous and furious person”. He has nothing to prove
all of this but if that if these characteristics are a license to kill, then he should
tell his police to give the same treatment
to people in his force who fit the above
description. And mind you, there are
many.
Why is he compelled to let a man
called Gudlar roam free when the very
same SIT has sufficient grounds to file
a case because he stole drugs from the
ANC godown? What compulsions does
Ravi Naik have to be dodgy about
whether the girlfriend and sister of
drug don Dudu met him with CD’s of
their sting operation against Gudlar. He
kept shut when the women went to
town saying they showed the CD’s to
Ravi Naik first. When asked a week ago,
he denied seeing the CD’s. He even
asked – in a sudden bout of memory
lapse- who Zarina (Dudu’s girlfriend)
and Ayla (his sister were).
Our Home Minister has no real compulsions to do all this. We hope. And
therein lies the fear. When a man with
no compulsions engages with the powerful to disengage the weak, alarm bells
should ring. It is Goa’s tragedy that it is
not sufficiently alarmed.

Circa 2011- A Goenkar in Lisboa

T

o be a Goan in Lisbon is to be in
a relationship, caught between
two rather different kinds of
nostalgia, or more appropriately,
saudades. The first is a nostalgia, a terribly bitter-sweet longing for Goa that
has been left behind. The names of
streets, the colour of buildings, the
façades of some these buildings, trees,
even the names of most people here,
constantly remind you of Goa. Here in
Lisbon lie the final resting places of people you grew up with on a first name
basis; Afonso de Albuquerque, Vasco da
Gama, Amalia. Lisbon, you could sometimes say, bears the imprint of Goa. For
me personally, as someone who grew
up in Panjim, Lisbon is Panjim enhanced. It is also on many fronts, the
possibility of what Panjim and Goa can
be, if we in Goa can get our act together.
This possibility is not the mere aping
of Lisbon however, for there is much to
be critiqued and improved on in Lisbon. This is where we come to the second kind of nostalgia, a longing for the
old. This nostalgia is a dead-end. There
is no future in mourning for the Goan
pre-1961 past. This history is either extremely problematic to claim, or it was
in fact the history of a small set of Goan
families who have access to Lisbon and
its metropolitan elite. The Goan living

JaSon keith
FernanDeS
in Lisbon in 2010 does not necessarily
need to rely on this past to forge a contemporary relationship with the city;
the present moment gives one enough
and more opportunities to do so.
It is precisely this present moment
that could allow us to reinvent the Goan
We need to look beyond the chapters of
history celebrated by these small select
Goan families and look at the manner
in which the silent members of Goan
society reinvent this relationship. Such
an exploration would allow us to move
away from the problematic colonial and
nationalist articulations of our relationship, and shift toward a more cosmopolitan relationship based on mutual
respect and sharing.
This look of a Goan living in Lisbon
(and in extension, Portugal) is not based
solely on Goan emotions and experiences. On the contrary, this look at Lisbon is also based on the recognition of
the fact that the contemporary Goan is
also a South-Asian. To be South- Asian
is to recognize that not only is the con-

temporary Goan born as an Indian citizen, but is engaged with a larger subcontinental politics. This truly
sub-continental lens, freed from the
shackles of restrictive nationalism, provides the Goan with an enhanced vision
from which to examine and introspect
on the Lisbon experience. To fail to do
so would otherwise lead us to fall back
into the narrow ruts of the nostalgic
longing for the Estado da India under
the Estado Novo. As I stressed before,
this experience is too limited to provide
support for a reinvention of a new Goan
relationship with both Portugal and the
world. In deed a relooking our relationship with Portugal will also impact on
the manner in which we relook our relationship with the people we share the
subcontinent and the country with.
But perhaps the reinvention of a relationship is beyond the capacity of a
tiny column. My offerings here will seek
to diary the manner in which a contemporary Goan negotiates life in our former metropole. Who knows what will
come out of this exploration?
Jason Keith Fernandes is currently engaged in
doctoral research at ICSTE's Dept of Anthropology in Lisbon. When not agonising over the
state of his dissertation, Jason offers unsolicited
opinons on law, culture and identity politics. He
also desperately misses Goa.

PEOPLE’SEDIT

Panjim Is Choking
Stephen DiaS

T

he Republic Day parade witnessed huge black smoke
emanating from the Campal
ground. Among those present, was
Dr Simon D’Sousa, Pollution Control Board Chairman who was sitting close to the Governor of Goa, Dr
S S Siddu.
Apparently, CCP workers were
burning garbage to clean up the
area, although burning of plastic is
illegal. This was the sorry state of affairs even during the Republic Day.
When I visited the Pollution Control Board to enquire about this and
during my brief discussions with the
Dr D’Sousa, who was my colleague
at NIO, I learned that he has been
doing his best to curb pollution in
Goa but the concerned authorities

The overall situation
in Panjim and other
parts in Goa is alarming but our Governor
has been portraying
a rosy picture about
the state of affairs
while addressing the
legislative assembly.
It is ridiculous, that
the Governor is
oblivious to the
rapes, crimes, drug
menace, police suspensions, garbage
and pollution
are a bit reluctant to act promptly. In
fact, he mentioned a certain Ambe,
CCP engineer who was asked to
come and deal with stench around
his office, which has still not been
dealt with, even after an official intimation to the municipality.
Dr Joe D’Sousa, who is a consultant with the CCP, later told me that
that garbage mismanagement has
become a business and solutions are
discarded by those in power with
vested interests. Elvis Gomes and
Mayor Carolina Po have been ignoring his official letters about the same.
In another incident, I noticed
smelly drains near Hindu Pharmacy
due to the dumping of garbage by
some hotels around and even
though the CCP is aware of it, no action is taken.
The overall situation in Panjim
and other parts in Goa is alarming
but our Governor has been portraying a rosy picture about the state of
affairs while addressing the legislative assembly. It is ridiculous, that
the Governor is oblivious to the
rapes, crimes, drug menace, police
suspensions, garbage and pollution,
especially in mining areas. Is the
Governor blind or not bothered
about Goa’s affairs?
It is amusing to read in a national
daily, based in Goa, that the CCP’s
Chak a Chak campaign run by the
CCP engineer Ambe is a huge success. Are reporters from Goa doing
their home work before reporting or
are they working from their desks
and not from the field? Panjim today
is stinking and our Panjim MLA
Manohar Parrikar and Babush
Monseratte are hoping that their respective panel of aspiring corporators would come to power in the
CCP elections to later clean up the
city!
My appeal to them would be to
pull up their socks and address the
grave problems affecting Panjimites.

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Disclaimer: Except for the editorial above, articles and letters in Herald represent the views of the concerned authors, and do not necessarily
reflect the views of the Herald editor, publisher, and/or owners.

7

“

www.oheraldo.in

goa

Faleiro calls for preservation
of music and art forms
HERALD NEWS DESK

HERALD REPORTER

Commissioner for NRI Affairs, Eduardo Faleiro inaugurates ‘7th
All Goa Mando Festival’ at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao. Also
present are Director of TAME, Francis Braz, Jose Marie da’Silva
and others.
strictly be classified as a traditional folk song, it has been
part of cultural repertoire of
Goa for a long time. The lyrical and musical content of
Dekhni, Dalpod, Fugdi,
Dhalo, is definitely Goan, he
added.
Faleiro felicitated Jose
Marria Da’Silva, recipient of
Mando Award for his contri-

bution to Mando lyrics and
songs. Pervez Gomes released the souvenir on the occasion.
Director of TAME Francis
Braz also spoke on the occasion. Bismark Torcato proposed the vote of thanks.
Faleiro also witnessed the
Mando performances by the
participants.

Grace Church feast today

Panjim, Feb 5: Speaker Pratapsing Rane on Friday told
the Government to take serious note of rising incidents of
cutting of cables of local news
channels in various parts of
the State during assembly
sessions. He also asked the
chief minister to intervene.
Cable connections were
found to be cut in some parts
of the State during this Session of Goa Assembly.
Non–performing ministers
are put in spot due to live
telecast of the proceedings.
The Opposition MLAs believe some ministers in the
government who are not too
happy with people seeing
them criticized in the House,
have hand in this business so
that people are not in a position to watch the sessions live.

According to Canacona
Police, a missing complaint
has been filed stating that one

APPOiNTmENTS

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with branches at Nuvem,Ponda,Vasco & Margao.
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Panjim, Feb 5: Our Lady of

Old Goa
panel to hold
dharna today

that Chapel of Batalhao on
January 6 1812 till the present Church built in modern
lines and inaugurated on
January 1, 1977 and upto
now, a vanguard of valiant
priests worked saliently to
propagate the devotion to
Our Lady of Grace.
Its first Chaplain Padre
Jose Caetano Lourenco, who
built the attached residence
to the Chaplain, the eclectic
visionary Fr Tony Gomes, the
sagacious cropper Fr Joao
Lopes (both strong pillars),
their hard work successors,
Fr Bossuet Menezes, Fr Lino

Monteiro, Fr Joao Pedro Fernandes and present day pastor Fr Cleto Pereira, a good
administrator and meticulous disciplinarian, in hard
work trinity with Fr Jaime
Couto and Fr Derick Fernandes, all worked ceaselessly
and continue the task in the
vineyard of God.
Situated on the elevated
Grace Estate, the Church
square is an oasis of spirituality, inviting an introspection of present and past: Ave
Gratia Plena, Hail Full of
grace, Nossa Senhora de
Graca.

+
Old Goa, Feb 5: In an effort to
save heritage sites and its
surroundings areas at Old
Goa from anti-social elements, an organization
known as 'Save Old Goa' will
organise a peaceful demonstration at the Gandhi Circle
at Old Goa on Sunday morning at 10 am.
The meeting has been convened to protest against all
destructive activities at the
around the World Heritage
sites in and around Old Goa.
Speaking to Herald, Rector of Basilica of Bom Jesus
Fr Savio Baretto said: "The
meeting has been organised
by the Old Goa Action Committee because we can see a
rampant increase of builders
grabbing all areas around
Old Goa and are trying to
make Old Goa a concrete
jungle.”
“The government had
promised in a meeting,
where I was present once,
that there would be a master
plan for Old Goa. But till
today, the Master Plan is not
yet implemented,” he said.

APPOiNTmENTS

that one Ajay Narcinva Prabhugaonkar has filed the missing report on Friday.

HERALD NEWS DESK
Grace Church, which was
originally known as ‘Capela
de Batalhao’ of Portuguese
1st Infantry Regiment, is celebrating on Sunday, February 6 the Feast of her
Patroness, ‘Nossa Senhora
de Graca’ (Our Lady of
Grace).
People from all walks of life
from Margao, in particular
and from South Goa, in general, step every day in Grace
Church in search of divinity,
more especially on the feast
day to join and take part in all
day divine festivities.
The Grace Church has celebrated its Golden Jubilee in
May 2009 on a grand scale.
This year marks the commemoration of 200th Mass
celebrated in praise of Our
Lady of Grace, ever since the
first mass was solemnized on
May 3, 1812, on the feast day
of Santa Cruz (Feast of Holy
Cross), 199 years ago.
From the construction of

The government had promised in a
meeting, where I was present once,
that there would be a master plan for
Old Goa. But till today, the Master
Plan is not yet implemented.
--- Fr Savio Baretto

Speaker tells Poinguinim resident missing
Govt: Take
Canacona, Feb 5: A 76-year- Hari
Yeshwant
Prabold man from Poinguinim hugaonkar of Mahalwadanote of cable has been reported missing Poinguinim has gone missing
from his house since Thurs- since Thursday morning.
TV ‘cutters’
day morning.
Police further informed

Panjim, Feb 5: Commissioner
for NRI Affairs, Eduardo
Faleiro has stressed the need
for preservation and promotion of all music and art forms
of Goa. He said eminent
Goan artists should be honoured and new talent should
be encouraged to carry on
the tradition.
Faleiro was speaking as the
chief guest after inaugurating
the 7th All Goa Mando Festival organised by Tourism
Airline Management Education (TAME) in association
with Department of Art and
Culture and supported by
Tiatr Academy of Goa, at
Ravindra Bhavan, Margao
recently.
Faleiro
congratulated
TAME for holding the
Mando Festival in Margao for
the last seven years and said
that although Mando cannot

“

Eminent Goan artists should be honoured
and new talent should be encouraged to
carry on the tradition.
--- Eduardo Faleiro

Goa I Sunday 6 , February 2011

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STORES EXECUTIVE - Nuvem, Ponda & Vasco-(2 Nos)
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Interested Candidates, Walk in for Interview
with your Resume on Tuesday 8th February 2011
at 10 a.m. at below mentioned Address

The movement is still in a nascent stage
and needs to grow further. For that, we do
need funds to set up a mobile library that
will be able to get to the deeper regions in
Goa,” --- Diviya Kapur

Starting this week Herald Weekend will initiate periodic campaigns on issues in Goa that need urgent attention.
After the first opening which will broadly introduce the issue, the coming weeks will look into various aspects of
the problem specifically, interview key stake holders and above all wait for your suggestions and solutions. Write
in to campaign@herald-goa.com Do remember this is your campaign

400

WASTEMANAGEMENT

I

magine going for a
Sunday dip in the
river near your house
or even down by the
beach and finding
plastic bags and old beer
bottles floating by. Picture
yourself walking through the
back alleys of Panjim or Mapusa, where once were clean
pavements now stand
mounds of garbage. All this
is already a current affair
and it’s about to get worse.
Goa’s garbage woes are piling up and it’s beginning to
stink. As of 2011, Goa produces an estimated 400
tonnes of garbage per day!
And that number will only
go up…

Tonnes… !
…that’s the amount of garbage Goa generates
daily. Solving it is hardly a walk in the park. It dominates gram sabhas, causes local political disturbances, either to stop a garbage dump being
formed or to transfer some to somewhere else.
To initiate this campaign towards solutions,
Kurt Bento gives a broad picture scenario

What do we do with
all this waste?
The Chak a Chak campaign on January 26, held in
just a few places in Goa, with
a very successful turnout,
highlighted the dire state of
affairs. Patricia Pinto, campaign co-ordinator had this
to say, about the current situation, “There is hardly any
proper garbage management in Goa and neither is
there any sort of planning to
rectify this situation. No one
is taking it seriously and this
is a situation that needs attention now!”
She would know, having
worked a little over a decade
ago with the government on
ridding Goa of waste pet bottles and plastic bags – a project that was successful in a
way but 80 days of garbage
collection does not make a

Not worth
the weight
An average person
produces 250 grams
of garbage per day,
if you multiply it
with the population
of Goa, that roughly
amounts to 400
tonnes of garbage.
This of course does
not even take waste
produced by restaurants and hotels
into consideration.

GOODNEWS

Heres to more reading

O

n February 6, hundreds of people
will eat, drink,
dance, socialize and shop, so
that underprivileged kids
can read. On February 26,
art lovers across Goa and
perhaps the world will be engaged in a bidding war to
buy art from some of Goa’s
brilliant and talented artists,
just so that more books can
be bought and more futures
will have a solid foundation.
People will get together at
Literati, a bookstore at
Calangute, to bring to life a
charity fete that aims to raise
money for a mobile library.
BeBook is an initiative that
aims to inculcate and encourage the reading habit in
underprivileged children
“We’ve already started going
out in our cars, laden with
books in the backseat, to orphanages and smaller
schools, but the movement is
still in a nascent stage and
needs to grow further. For
that, we do need funds to set
up a mobile library that will
be able to get to the deeper
regions in Goa,” says Diviya
Kapur, owner of Literati and

state clean. The work has to
continue and neither can
one depend on just a few individuals to do the job.
It starts with segregation
of garbage. Panjim has some
semblance of a garbage collection system but even that
has its flaws. Dumping fish
remains or chicken bones in
a plastic packet simply defeats the purpose of separating wet waste from dry
waste. Wet waste can be
used to create compost and
compost bins, if managed
properly, do not stink.
But even before garbage
goes into a bin, measures
can be taken to reduce the
amount of dry waste that
each household produces.
“Refuse to accept plastic
bags. I’m sure people can
carry cloth or other bags
when they go out shopping.
A little effort goes a long way
into helping keep Goa
clean,” Clinton Vaz, another

one of the volunteers at BeBook.
The fete will start at 10.30
am and will carry on through
the day until 8 pm. There are
going to be a lot of attractions
at this fete – stalls with food,
gifts, jumble sales and more
– perfect for a day out. One of
Goa’s young talents, the
Streetlight People, an up and
coming blues and funk band
will be on hand to set the
mood. Besides that, there
will be loads of gifts and giveaways, chief amongst them,
dinner for two at some of
North Goa’s five-starred hotels, household items and
more.
At the end of the day, it’s a

coming together of people
who want to see change, improvement in children’s futures and a betterment of
society. Today, underprivileged children get a better
chance at education. They
learn that studying is not a
burden. Tomorrow, a children’s library is in the
pipeline, where any child
can be a part of it, some who
can afford to pay so that others who cant also get the
same privileges as them –
that of being able to read and
hold their heads up high in
the world, that of being able
to be a part of a society that
looks after people who need
help.
-- TEAM HERALD

T

he small lanes of Anjuna fade away as
you step into Artjuna,
a café cum art gallery and
now the venue of an art fair
extraordinaire. The small organic space created for the
fair houses the work of 30
artists – painters, sketch
artists, sculptors and more –
from different part of the
world and India as well.
Their theme – India, their vision – global!
Kate Wilson, young, brilliant photographer and curator of the art fair is one half
of the brains behind this two
week exhibition, the other
half is Moshe, owner of
Artjuna and someone who
can create magic with
leather. “I have been showing my work here at Artjuna
for the past three years and
one day, over a cup of coffee
with Moshe and the fact that
many artists would come
over and ask if they too could
show their work, that we
thought of having an art
fair,” says Kate.
The fair showcases Fluid
Serie, the work of Joy Kesty,
who also has her own independent art gallery in Morjum. Joy’s work is indeed
fluid, with a depth and vision
that seeps into you. Walking
through the spaces demar-

co-ordinator with Chak a
Chak and a waste management crusader asserts
Not in my
backyard…
One of the biggest issues
plaguing Goa is the issue of
dumping grounds and treatment plants. No one wants it
around them, mostly due to
the bad experiences encountered by the people of Curca.
The mismanagement of that
particular facility left people
with a bad taste in their
mouth.
Sanjit Rodrigues, former
CCP Commissioner who
started the Panjim clean up
operation says, “Today, the
quantum of solid waste has
increased, as has the amount
of non-degradable waste.
Just dumping garbage is not
the solution. It’s just going to
fill up space. We need a sustainable model of garbage
management.”

“

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

Iain Mills, who is showcasing
his work at the Artjuna Art Fair
has worked with legendary
photographer David Bailey for
the better part of a decade

Proposal disposed,
garbage not

T

he huge gap between policy and implementation at all levels of the states waste management mechanism is evident in the way an
innovative Rural Garbage Disposal Scheme of 2005
has literally gone to waste. A notification issued by
the Directorate of Panchayats in 2005 stated that all
village panchayats would be funded 98 per cent of
costs of setting up waste management mechanisms
like compost plants, waste sorting centres, compost
pits and waste collection processes like door to door
collection, scientific segregation etc.
In addition, specific areas were marked which a
cluster of adjoining villages would use as a common
ground for dumping, sorting and treatment. The
sum and substance of this was integrated micro level
solutions at the panchayat level with funds coming
from the government.
Clause 18 of the notification also provided for the
entry of private professional players. The clause
states “The designated village panchayat shall take
full advantage of and shall extend their full cooperation to any common garbage treatment complex
(CGTC) if and when established on a commercial
basis by the government and through a competent
private and professional entrepreneur
Five years later, not a single village panchayat in
Goa has availed of or implemented this scheme to
scientifically dispose and rear garbage. The govern-

ment simply did not inform the panchayats or hold
any dialogue with them. There was no effort to publicise this scheme or integrate the stake holdersnamely the panchayats either at the planning stage
or when the notification as announced. Says former
sarpanch and the longest serving panch of the
Penha De France panchayat, Umesh Phadte
“Firstly, there was very little information given to us.
Secondly we learnt that we had to first acquire land
before we could avail of the scheme. Now the areas
earmarked in the notification were selected at random. Acquiring those lands under severe local opposition would be next to impossible”
Efforts are now being made to revive this scheme.
However inquiries have revealed that the scheme,
though existing on paper was not referred to while
making budgetary allocations. So even if the panchayats had availed of this scheme, there would be a
question mark over its funding.

Art in the open
cated by whitewashed bamboo mats you will see Iain
Mills and his polaroid shots
of Kerala, Lucie Walta, a
Dutch lady who runs a cafe
in Arambol called Double
Dutch, but who specializes
in making bronze sculptures
from casts or Mao, a tattoo
artist from Anjuna who has
been working on illustrative
tribal art for years now.
Some of his work has actually taken 10 years to complete.
Renu Pundir, from Delhi
but now living in Panjim
takes pains to create intricate acrylic paintings. She
captures Goa by moving
paint around on paper with

POLAROID HEAVEN:
Iain Mills’ Kerala captured

Anjuna to many, is known more
as a nerve centre for Goas infamous drug trade than the romantic associations of its hippie
past. But the open art fair at Anjuna and events like these will
change its image. Kurt Bento
went to a café art cum gallery
Artjuna where artists from all over
the world poured their souls out

a knife. Cairo Sealey, is an
English photographer who
has shot images of local
school kids on a beach in the
shape of hearts for a Mapusa-based NGO called
‘Children Walking Tall’ and
has postcards and prints for
sale, all the proceeds of
which go towards the NGO.
These are stories of but a
few of the people on show at
Artjuna, some of them who
have never let their work see
the light of day in the past.
“Quite a few of these artists
have never shown their
work before so it was quite a
task to get them to agree to
come here and put up their
creations. I have been doing
the rounds of these small
galleries for years now and I
feel so happy that some of
them finally took that first
step and showcased their
work,” says Kate.
Anjuna has been in the
news for other reasons in the
past. Many look upon it as
another world altogether.
The exhibition, which will
stretch up to February 14,
proves that Anjuna is more
than just the beaches or the
hidden raves; it is a sight to
behold and a place to get lost
in a world of colour and creativity.

9

“

www.oheraldo.in

we

VILLAGEREPORT
Chandor

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

I personally feel that the shareholders and
gaonkars should take interest in the communidade as they used to do earlier when
dividends were paid.
— Thiago da Silva

Goa’s simple life is indeed exemplified in every one of its 180-odd villages.
Keeping with the theme of the people’s page, Herald Weekend takes a walk
through the quiet, serene atmosphere of the quintessential Goan gaon and
highlights its problems but also its history and uniqueness.

Reclaiming its past
It’s a quiet little
afternoon in
Chandor and
amidst the
blasts of stone
quarrying Julio
D’silva takes a
look at what
makes this simple little village,
with no places
of worship or
playgrounds,
stay
grounded…

(above) MARKET CLOGGED: The drain in the
market clogged with plastic
(left) CAVORIM CHAPEL: The chapel at
Cavorim has been awaiting a resident priest
since 1987

C

handor Cavorim is truly
a quintessential Goan village. It has no
industry and the village
thrives on the earnings of the
employed citizens, quite a
number of which are overseas. It lacks many basic
amenities and yet the people
are quite content with what
they have.
The present day Chandor
Cavorim village panchayat
came into being in 1972 after
the erstwhile Chandor panchayat was bifurcated into
two panchayats – Cavorim
Chandor and Guirdolim.
Since then, the village has
had eight sarpanchas with
John Menino Dias having
the longest term of 18 years.
The only significant contribution that John Menino
Dias made to the village was
the construction of a bridge
at Miriagirem which can be
used only by two wheelers
and small utility vehicles because it is quite narrow. The
singular achievement of all
these sarpanchas is that the
village has not changed its

rustic look as there are no
high rises or multi-apartment buildings. However,
this has not been by design.
Chandor Cavorim does
not have a church or a temple or a mosque and the inhabitants are quite happy
visiting the places of worship
in the neighbouring Guirdolim village. The village has
no playground and the
youngsters are quite happy
playing football or cricket in
any open area. The Sports

Department did construct a
playground near the St. Anthony’s Chapel under the
‘playground for village
school’ scheme.
Chandor Cavorim is basically an agrarian village. It is
indeed an irony that though
the village is serviced by an
irrigation canal – the Paroda
canal that was constructed
by the Portuguese – agriculture is on the decline and the
village is now primarily
driven by remittances from

its sons working either overseas or in the country. Incidentally, the village does not
even have a bank and most
of the overseas remittances
are credited to the Canara
Bank Chandor branch,
which is actually housed in
neighbouring Guirdolim.
The influx of migrants in
the village is a festering issue
that can blow up anytime.
What irks the villagers is the
fact that the migrants have
settled in one part of the

Western portion of the village in an area that was
known as Xindremoll or
Bachikamoll. Today that
area is being called muslimwada and this is causing
the problem.
Every day, the afternoon
siesta of the residents of the
Western wards of the village
is disturbed due to the loud
explosion caused by the explosives used to blast the
basalt rock where metal is
being extracted. This activity
is carried out by circumventing all the rules and laws of
the land as those involved
had the right connections
with the powers that be. The
use of explosives not only
disturbs the peace of the village but has also resulted in
many houses developing
cracks and quite a number
of fields rendered uncultivable. Besides, the hillock
looks ugly with the excavated portion resembling an
ugly scar on a beautiful face.
This issue has featured
many a times at the Gram
Sabha meetings and the
panchayat’s standard reply
is that they are not involved

he three-day Monte
Music Festival began
on Friday 4 February
at the Capella Nossa Senhora de Monte at Old Goa.
Performances at the festival
are always magical. The
early evening performance,
held outdoors, has the spectacular view of Old Goa and
the Mandovi river as a background, and takes place
against the setting sun.
Hindustani
vocalist
Sumedha Desai enthralled
the gathering with a medley
of compositions in evening
ragas, starting with ‘Hansadhwani’, followed by a
‘dadra’. Sumedha has an
easy mastery over the art, a
powerful voice, and an obvious flair for performing. She
has won numerous awards,
and is one of Goa’s most accomplished young classical
vocalists.
This was followed by a
recital of Baroque compositions performed by a five
member group from Portugal, ‘Os Musicos do Tejo’, led

in any way. The panchayat
has steadfastly maintained
that the matter should be
taken up with the Communidade.
Mismanagement of the
Communidade is one of the
reasons for the decline in
agriculture in the village. As
the Communidade was
dried of funds following the
Land to the Tiller Act, it
stopped maintaining the
drains in the fields due to
which they have got silted
and the huge field known as
Biczona is now waterlogged
throughout the year and
hence cannot be cultivated.
The Communidade is
faced with the gargantuan
task of reclaiming its land
which has been very systematically transferred to individuals by the previous
committee members either
knowingly or unknowingly.
In what is truly surprising,
even the major lake known
as “Oilem Tollem” in the village has been transferred to
an individual though historically all water bodies in the
village remained with the
Communidade.

Goa produces 400 tonnes of
garbage daily. Whese does all
of it go?
Read more on page

Tiago da Silva, a gaonkar of the village,
after spending his life on the high seas,
took over as the president of the Cavorim Communidade in April last year
since he has retired from service and is
back in his village.
n What exactly are the problems faced by the Com-

munidade of Cavorim?
The main problem of course is the lack of revenue.
Earlier, when the communidade fields were cultivated
we used to get revenue which was used to carry out
the maintenance work like cleaning the waterways etc.
However, since the fields have now gone away from
the Communidade we have to look for other avenues
to generate income.
But the Communidades action of leasing land to extract black metal has come under severe criticism.
That is true. The lease was signed in violation of the
Code of Communiade and I fail to understand how the
previous committee could do so. What is worse is that
we were under the impression that the lease had expired on March 31 2010 but were taken aback to realize
that in November 2009 the then president had issued
a NOC to enable the leaseholder to renew the licenses.
But the Communidade can still move to cancel the
licenses as they are based on a fraudulently issued
NOC.
This particular issue is truly a messy one. As per the
survey records, communidade is not the occupant of
the land in question. It shows the names of some other
individuals as occupants and the heirs of those occupants have now moved the court seeking to declare
them as owners in possession of that land. Of course
we are fighting that case.
n How did the survey records change?
That is quite a long story. In fact, records of the communidade show that practically every president has
transferred communidade land either in his or his
family members name. We are in the process of identifying all such lands and shall initiate the process to
get back the lands to the communidade. But it is truly
an ardous task.
n Why is it so difficult?
Although it is believed that Communidade is an autonomous body, the reality is quite different. We need
the approval of the administrator for anything and
everything and when it comes to filing cases, the
process is still lengthier. Our complaints regarding encroachments were lying in the administrator’s office
for more than two years without even an inspection
being held. However, I must say that the present administrator has taken some interest and things are
moving now.
n What about income from the fishing rights and
usufruct of the trees?
There again it is a long drawn process as we have to
get the administrator’s approval which really takes a
long time. In the first place, the administrator has additional charge and cannot devote time to the affairs
of the communidade. Secondly the administrator gets
changed every now and then and files remain pending.
n So what according to you is the solution?
I personally feel that the shareholders and gaonkars
should take interest in the communidade as they used
to do earlier when dividends were paid. If we all pool
our minds together, we can revive the communidade.
I took up this task to do something for the village, but
I need help and co-operation from my villagers rather
than being targeted unnecessarily.

Quite often, it’s at a little ‘hole-in-the-wall’ that you will
find the best local food, from meats to fried chillies to
spicy omlettes, Herald Weekend pays tribute to the folk
that keep local street food alive and delicious, with a little bit of Goa in each morsel.

Saligao’s
Burger
Kings

by Marcos Magalhães. Normally, late evening performances are held in the chapel,
but this group opted to perform outdoors, as the
acoustics would not be right.
A badly misbehaving sound
system detracted a bit from
their performance, but this
should take nothing away
from their virtuosity. A so-

prano, a tenor and a baritone
sang in harmony, unveiling
compositions from the 16th
to the 18th century, in Portuguese, Italian, Spanish and
even English. It was a sublime performance; one that
will be remembered.
Earlier, Delegate of the
Fundacao Oriente Eduardo
Kol de Carvalho welcomed

the gathering, while Goa Assembly Speaker Pratapsingh Rane and Portuguese
Consul General António
José Marques Sabido Costa
lit the traditional lamp. A
book by former Fundacao
Oriente Delegate Paulo
Varela Gomes – ‘A History of
Church Architecture in
Goa’– was also released.

On Sunday, the Kala
Academy flute and sitar ensemble will perform at 6pm
in the open courtyard. Then
the Koranatus String Quartet, Tony Gatward and the
Bangalore School of Music
Baroque Ensemble will perform inside the Chapel from
7pm onwards.

B

urgers – spicy
chicken, beef chilly,
pork chilly, tongue,
sorpotel and choris pau and
cutlet pau, all this yummy
fare and more can be found
at D’Souza Goan cart in Saligao, diagonally opposite the
church. With green fields behind them and the road in
front, Agostinho D’souza and
Anslem Fernandes sell their
wares Monday through Sat-

urday from the evening into
the night. One bite into any
of the items on the menu
and, in former Saligao
Sporting and Sesa Goa footballer Agostinho’s words,
“you’ll want to try it again…
and again!”
Anslem, former cook on a
cruise ship, says, “the people
love the food that we cook,
we’ve had such a great respose that we started creat-

ing specials on certain days
so that people can have a
take home dinner. We have
even started catering to
small get-togethers.” Their
food is marinated and precooked at home the same afternoon by Anslem, except
for the sorpotel, which is
cooked and then marinated
for a few days to let the
flavour seep in.

10

www.herald-goa.com

Goa I Sunday 6, February 2011

obituary obituary obituary obituary obituary obituary obituary

ULFA-Centre
talks on
February 10
PTI
Guwahati, Feb 5: The banned
ULFA today announced unconditional peace talks with
the Centre on February 10 in
New Delhi to find an amicable solution to their 31-yearlong armed struggle.
Terming the first round of
talks as a "courtesy call", senior
ULFA leader Sasadhar
Choudhury told reporters
here that the outfit "would like
Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh to be present during the
talks on Thursday as he represents Assam in Parliament".
Asked whether ULFA's
core demand of 'sovereignty
for Assam' would be discussed, Choudhury said, "We
have decided to go for unconditional talksâ&#x20AC;?.

11 www.oheraldo.in

“

india

Goa ISunday 6 , February 2011

The judiciary system has to be overhauled in a serious way to mete justice to ordinary people.
--- Arundhati Roy

I have not heard any rumblings from anyone attempting to topple the Dr Mukul
Sangma government in Meghalaya.
--- Oscar Fernandes

India, Pak to pick up the threads at Thimpu I never had a coterie
PTI
THIMPHU, FEB 5: Making a
fresh attempt to restart the
bilateral dialogue process,
Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani
counterpart Salman Bashir
will meet here tomorrow
during which the Indian
side is expected to seek an
update on the Mumbai attacks investigations and
trial.
Rao and Bashir, who are
here for the SAARC meeting of foreign secretaries
and Council of ministers, are
expected to take stock of the
bilateral ties and discuss
whether some confidencebuilding initiatives could be
taken.
This will be the first meeting between the foreign secretaries after the failed talks

between the foreign ministers in July last year in Pakistan.
India, while keeping low
the expectations from the
meeting, has made it clear
that it was ready to have
discussions on all outstanding issues with Pakistan but
through a step-by-step approach.
The resumption of fullfledged dialogue, which
was stalled after the 2008
Mumbai attacks, would,
however, depend on the
progress by Pakistan to
punish all those behind the
26/11 strikes, sources said.
At tomorrow's meeting,
Rao is expected to seek an
update from Bashir on the
investigations and trial in
the Mumbai attacks case in
Pakistan.
She is also expected to

CBI gets court notice
in spectrum scam case
PTI
NEW DELHI, FEB 5:A
Delhi court today issued notice to the CBI, asking it to file
a detailed report on whether
its probe in the 2G spectrum
case covers the aspect of national security as raised by
Janta Party chief Subramanian Swamy in his private
complaint seeking prosecution of former Telecom Minister A Raja.
“Issue notice to the CBI
to file its detailed report of the
investigation being carried
out by it and whether it covers the aspect of national security
as
raised
by
Subramanian Swamy in the
present case," Special CBI

judge Pradeep Chaddah said.
During the hearing, the
court queried if they can still
proceed in the case before it
in the wake of Raja's arrest by
the CBI.
Seeking CBI's response in
the matter, the court posted
the hearing for February 23.
“I am of the opinion that
this court should not proceed
for the time being with this
matter”, the judge said while
issuing notice to the CBI.
Swamy, meanwhile, submitted before the court that
he is intending to move an
application to implead some
other persons, including
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M
Karunanidhi, as accused in
this complaint.

HOPE FOR THE BEST
Setting the tone for the meeting
Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao
said ‘We hope that both the governments come to satisfactory conclusion about what is required so that
the trial could be satisfactorily concluded because justice has to be
done.”
seek a response from Bashir
on India's request for voice
samples of the persons in
Pakistan who were heard
coordinating the 26/11 attacks.
Setting the tone for the
meeting, Rao said yesterday
in Delhi, “We hope that both
the governments come to
satisfactory
conclusion
about what is required so
that the trial could be satisfactorily concluded because
justice has to be done.”

She made the comments
after meeting Home Minister P Chidambaram during
which they are understood
to have discussed issues related to the Mumbai attacks.
Noting that 26/11 trial in
Pakistan was “one of the issues under discussion between the two governments,
particularly between the Interior Ministry of Pakistan
and our Home Ministry,”
she said New Delhi and Islamabad have been in corre-

spondence about the exchange of evidence that is
required for the trial to go
forward.
On her meeting with
Bashir, she said India will
see how it can pick up the
thread once again.
“We are going to meet
after a certain interregnum,
a few months after last
meeting. So, we will see how
we can pick up the thread
once again. I am sure we
will exchange ideas. Let's
hope that we would be able
to pick up convergence of
views. Every such meeting
is an attempt to build
greater comprehension of
each other's position and
deeper understanding,” the
foreign secretary said.
The meeting could also
set the stage for the visit of
Pakistan Foreign Minister

Shah Mahmood Qureshi to
India in the first quarter of
this year.
Qureshi, who has been invited for talks by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, is
unwilling to travel to India till
there is an assurance that the
talks would be “result-oriented.”
India is of the view that
the meeting between the foreign secretaries would be exploratory in nature, aimed at
unlocking the process of dialogue.
India feels that before the
two countries agree on resuming the full-fledged dialogue, the two sides should
take steps in the fields which
affect common people directly. In this context, India
wants to discuss issues related to visa, fishermen and
trade and commerce.

around me: Devgn
PTI
NEW DELHI, FEB 5:Ajay
Devgn feels that his dislike
for a coterie around him has
kept him in good stead in
Bollywood.
Devgn had three hits to
his credit last year and
opened 2011 successfully
with Madhur Bhandarkar's
rom-com 'Dil Toh Bachcha
Hai Ji' but the nationalaward-winning actor says he
has been careful about picking up people around him.
“I have never had a coterie
around me whether at the
beginning of my career or
today,” Devgn told PTI.
“I may have seen highs as
well as lows but never ever
have I given myself in the
hands of those who may take

unfair advantage of me,” says
Devgn.
The actor says he did not
think twice before agreeing
to play a 40-year-old guy, who
falls for his 20 something junior at the workplace.
Devgn and Emraan
Hashmi reunited for the
buddy comedy again in 'Dil
Toh...' after 'Once Upon A
Time In Mumbaai' where
they were pitted against each
other.
“When Madhur came to
me with 'Dil Toh Bachcha
Hai Ji', I and Kumar Mangat
(producer) sat down with
him and started discussing
the other co-actors. It was
Madhur who came up with
the idea of roping in Emraan and I was convinced
too."

Trinamool may back Congress on JPC demand
PTI
NEW DELHI, FEB 5 : T r i namool Congress, which has
been supportive of the clamour for a Joint Parliamentary

Committee probe into the 2G
spectrum allocation scam,
may go with the Congress if it
accepts the opposition demand.
The major ally has decided

to go with the Congress saying, "We have no objection to
JPC if the government accepts it”, Trinamool Congress
sources told PTI here.
Banerjee has already

made it clear that being a
UPA ally, her party would
go with whatever stand the
coalition government at
the Centre takes in the
matter.

Earlier the party had said
they were willing to support
the demand for JPC probe
into the spectrum issue.
However, the party
wanted a debate on the issue

in parliament. “Let us hear
the opposition view on their
demand for a JPC. Let us
also hear why the government has so far refused to accept it”, they said.

FROM PAGE 1
Fatorda erupts
the Opposition leader making his presence felt at the
Gumteshwar Temple just at the entrance to the Multipurpose
school complex with MLA Damu Naik in tow.
After participating in the pooja, Parrikar said though the Assembly session is over, BJP’s crusade against corruption will
continue. “What has happened in the Assembly is just the beginning. We will continue our crusade against corruption till
the next Assembly session”, he said.
When newsmen drew his attention to Alemao’s challenge
to BJP for an Opinion poll on corruption in the PWD, Parrikar
shot back “if he thinks he is innocent, why did he not agree for
a Joint Assembly Committee (JAC) on the water distribution
scam?”.
Apparently calling spade a spade, the Opposition leader said
a Commission of Inquiry headed by a retired Judge should be
appointed to check the works carried out by the PWD for the
last one year. “The inquiry should probe whether the works
carried out tally with the payments made by the PWD. Let the
Commission probe the works bill-wise”, he added.
Incidentally, the Fatorda MLA assured newsmen that he
would unveil more scams in the PWD, and sought to know
why the PWD Minister was silent on the demand of a JAC on
distribution of water tanks. “Just wait and watch till the next
Assembly session. Many more skeletons will tumble out of the
cupboards”, Damu said.
Incidentally, Damu’s political rival Vijay Sardessai, who accompanied Alemao to the sports meet, described Damu as
anti-poor saying the water tanks were distributed by the PWD
because of restricted supply to the common man. “If we give
ration to the people on festive occasion, the BJP calls it a scam.
The BJP is bereft of issues and this shows their bankruptcy of
ideology. Even when I distributed sarees during a Haldi
Kukum function, the MLA has objected. Apparently, Damu
feels insecure and frustrated because his defeat is imminent”,
Sardessai added.

Power project MoU
undertake mining activity.
Despite no amendments being made to objective clause, the
nodal agency not only went ahead with the selection of the developer i.e – KSK Energy Ventures Ltd but also signed MoU
with them before a coal block was actually allotted to the State
by the Centre.
This MoU was not approved by the Cabinet nor was it referred to the finance or law departments
The State Finance Department in its observation on the
awarding of contract and MoU said that the selection done was
only on technical criteria and infructuous.
“Technical parameter is a necessary condition but not a sufficient condition. Financial parameters are crucial for selection
of developer. The financial bids that optimize the benefits to
the Government and to the public at large should become the
basis for selection process”, the Department observed.
“The basis of the bench mark for financial parameters indicated in the MoU is not known”, it further stated.
As per the documents available with Herald, the objective
of the Government is to earn revenue from the project and produce power to become self-reliant in power requirement.
However, the Finance Department pointed out “…to
achieve these objectives, there is no financial modeling done
and revenue streams worked out”.
As per the MoU, the power project SPVs (Special Purpose

Vehicle) shall commit to supply 10 per cent of power available
or 240 mw whichever is higher at the power project after meeting the obligation to the host State but before selling or supplying the power to any other person.
“While the Government intention is to become self-reliant
in power requirement, the reason for fixing only 10 per cent
requirement is not known. In fact while the first right of refusal
for a part of power generated goes to the host State, the Goa
Government should have kept the first right of refusal on the
balance power production. Therefore the rationale for only 10
per cent commitment is not clear…” the Finance observations
say.
Also, what is pertinent to note here is that according to the
MoU, the rate of power supply shall be mutually negotiated
and concluded by the parties at relevant time.
“If the Government does not know the cost of power and
the private sector has major say in the arrangement than the
entire exercise becomes hypothetical”, the observation say.
From the above observation it seems like the entire exercise
is infructuous and financial irregularities ruled the day.

Tainted Pak trio
same Test, and Butt was party to the bowling of those deliberate no balls, were proved”, the ICC said in a statement.
“We, therefore, impose the following sanctions: On Butt’s
ten years ineligibility, five years of which are suspended on the
condition that he doesn’t commit further breaches of the code,
and that he participates under the auspices of the Pakistan
Cricket Board in a programme of anti-corruption education.
“On Asif, a sanction of seven years of ineligibility, two years
of which are suspended on the condition that he commits no
further breach of the code and also participates in an anti-corruption programme”, it said.
“On Aamer a sanction of five years ineligibility. No further
sanctions are imposed on any player”, the statement added.

Happiest State in the world
technological freedom came in 2008 with the signing of the
Indo-US nuclear deal and the lifting of the ban on dual-use
technologies for India by advanced countries.
The fourth freedom, he said, was yet to come. This would
be the inclusion of all of India’s people, including the poor
presently excluded, into the great India growth story. He urged

Indian industry to make ‘inclusion’ of the masses a cornerstone
of its policy.
Pointing out the huge influence his uneducated mother and
his dedicated teacher, Bhave (see yesterday’s Herald), had on
his life, Dr Mashelkar said that parents and teachers play the
greatest role in the building of a nation. He said what India
needs is ‘convex lens leadership’ which brings light and thinking together, rather than ‘concave lens leadership’, which disperses it.
Pointing out that ‘innovation’ meant the successful exploitation of a new idea to create wealth in this country, Dr
Mashelkar said that an attitude of “Why not?” was required,
and a willingness to think outside the box. Open-mindedness,
he said, and willingness to understand other points of view
would lessen conflict in the country. For an innovation revolution, Dr Mashelkar called for “innovation in education and education in innovation”.
In a speech peppered with quotable quotes, Dr Mashelkar
at once inspired, entertained and enlightened a jam-packed
Dinanath Mangeshkar Hall at Kaka Academy. He said India’s
greatest strength was that 55 per cent of the country’s population was under 25.
He warned, however, that unbridled and widespread corruption could derail India’s success story. To become a genuinely developed country, he said, Indians will first have to
become non-corrupt.
Answering questions after the lecture, he agreed with an engineering college student that there should be Research and
Development (R&D) centres in Engineering Colleges, as engineering science is weak in India. He also said that while it is
very unlikely that India can ever overtake China in economic
terms, it can do much better in creativity and entrepreneurship; it already has 760 R&D centres employing 160,000 scientists. Giving the audience his email address – ram@ncl.res.in
– he said he was willing to answer any questions.
Earlier, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat inaugurated the D
D Kosambi Festival of Ideas. He said the festival of ideas was
to create an exchange of thoughts that can build the society,
state and nation. Dr Mashelkar, he informed the gathering, was
the head of the committee to draft a ‘Goa Vision 2035’ document, to draw a roadmap for the State’s development. Praising
Director of Art and Culture Prasad Lolayekar for his dedicated
efforts to improve the festival each year, he said the special eminence of this year’s speakers reflected the golden jubilee year
of Goa’s liberation. Director of National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) Dr Satish Shetye conducted the proceedings.

12

“

www.herald-goa.com

World
SNAPSHOT
European leaders clash
BRUSSELS: Sharp disagreements opened up among
European Union leaders at a summit here over a
german-led plan to boost the competitiveness of
weaker euro-zone economies, threatening to unsettle recently calm European financial markets. The
german proposals, backed by France, are viewed as
the price for an agreement to expand a bailout fund
for the struggling economies of the euro zone and
give the fund greater powers to stem the region's
debt crisis—a move seen as critical to restoring confidence in the euro.

Transplant ban on papal organs

VaTICan CITY: The Vatican says Pope Benedict XVI,
who has long been a champion of organ transplants,
is no longer an organ donor. The Pope's secretary,
Monsignor georg gä¨nswein, addressed the issue in
a letter to a german doctor who has been using the
fact that Benedict had a donor card to recruit other
donors. Vatican Radio, in a german language report
this week, said Father gä¨nswein wrote that while
the former cardinal Joseph Ratzinger's organ card
dates to the 1970s, it was rendered void when he became pope.

Thailand, Cambodia ink ceasefire

Bangkok: Thailand and Cambodia agreed to a
ceasefire Saturday after renewed fighting in a disputed border region killed at least one soldier. a tentative ceasefire appeared to be holding late Saturday
after Thai and Cambodian troops exchanged artillery
fire along their shared border. Military officials from
the two countries blamed each other for the outbreak of hostilities, the first in the region resulting in
fatalities in a year. Thai government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn says the military has specific
rules of engagement that were also communicated

Myanmar state media
asserts junta head’s role
AFP
BANGKOK, FEB 5:
Myanmar's junta chief appeared on the front of the
main state newspaper Saturday, above news that a retired
general had been made president, in what one analyst
said was an apparent assertion of strength.
Than Shwe, the junta
number one who has ruled
Myanmar with an iron fist
since 1992, was pictured in
full military uniform and described as senior general and
commander-in-chief of defence services in a prominent
announcement.
The item in the New Light
of Myanmar, entitled "Various
national races share joys and
sorrows", appeared to be
reprinted from an earlier
proclamation on the country's unity.
It was positioned above a
report on the appointment of
prime minister Thein Sein, a
key ally of the army chief, as
Myanmar's head of state.
"Maybe whoever is in
charge of the newspaper,
they just wanted to confirm
that Than Shwe is still the
boss," said Myanmar expert
Aung Naing Oo.
While Than Shwe has not
taken up the top political role
in the country's new political

system, many analysts have
long expected him to try to
keep some control behind the
scenes.
Thein Sein's appointment
was seen as supporting fears
that the regime has engineered the political process to
hide military power behind a
civilian facade.
The 65-year-old former
junta number four became a
civilian to contest the November election as head of the
junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party
(USDP), which claimed an
overwhelming majority in
the poll.
Despite the selection of a
president, a government has
not yet been formed and key
regime figures remain in
their positions.
The formation of a national assembly in Naypyidaw, convened for the first
time on Monday, takes the
country towards the final
stage of the junta's so-called
"roadmap" to a "disciplined
democracy".
A quarter of the parliamentary seats were kept
aside for the military even before the country's first poll in
20 years, which was marred
by the absence of democracy
icon Aung San Suu Kyi and
claims of cheating and intimidation.

PTI
PTI

CAIRO, FEB 5: Uncertainty and tension gripped Egypt on Saturday with international clamour growing on
beleaguered President Hosni Mubarak
to hand over power immediately as
saboteurs blew up a key gas pipeline to
Israel adding a fresh dimension to the
12-day old crisis in the Arab nation.
As unprecedented protests raged at
the famous Tahrir Square in central
Cairo, the state TV reported "dangerous
explosions continuing from one spot to
another" in the main source of gas supplying pipeline in El Arish.
The attackers used explosives to blow
up the 240km-long pipeline in the town
of Lihfen in northern Sinai near the
Gaza Strip and the army shut down the
gas supplies to Israel and Jordan, Egyptian officials said.
"It's big terrorist operation," the stateTV quoted an official as saying, who
blamed the attack on "foreign elements."
The attack on the pipeline came after
Israel, which receives 40 per cent of its
gas demand from Egypt, expressed concern that the supplies could be threatened if a new regime takes over in Cairo.
The attack happened as tens of thousands of people held demonstrations
against Mubarak with no sign of an end
to confrontation which has pitted the 82-

Egyptian troika
planning to limit
Mubarak’s power
PTI
NEW YORK, FEB 5: Newlynamed Egyptian Vice President
Omar Suleiman and his top military
commanders were discussing plans
to limit President Hosni Mubarak's
decision-making authority and possibly remove him from the presidential palace. Quoting US and Egyptian
officials, New York Times reported
that the plans did not call for
Mubarak to be stripped of presidency immediately.
The paper said that Army's backing was being sought to make
Suleiman to head an interim government which would negotiate with
the political opposition a timetable
for elections.
year-old leader against the anti-government protesters.
With no let up in protests fury, President Mubarak, who appeared increasingly cornered, held a meeting of his
new cabinet to revive the economy and
project calm in the face of the increasing

turmoil.
The meeting was attended by Egypt's
new Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq as
well as the central bank governor and
the ministers of petroleum, social solidarity, trade and industry, and finance.
Finance minister Samir Radwan announced that the banks and stock market will reopen by Monday as he termed
the economic situation in the country as
"very serious". A government analyst
claims that the uprising is costing the
country at least USD 310 million a day.
The President appears to have dug in
his heels with the prime minister announcing that Mubarak had no intention to quit or transfer power to his
deputy Omar Suleiman as being suggested by the country's major allies like
US.
The state-TV reported that Mubarak's
meeting took place on Saturday morning in the presidential palace Heliopolis,
a Cairo suburb, miles away from Tahrir
Square.
Massive protests were also witnessed
in other major Egyptian cities, including
Alexandria and Suez, demanding an
end to Mubarak's 30-year rule.
To pace themselves, the protest leaders declared that while the sit-in would
continue at Tahrir Square daily, the massive rallies would be held on Tuesdays
and Fridays.

BERLIN, FEB 5: British Prime
Minister David Cameron believes
his country’s policy of multiculturalism has "failed" to prevent the radicalisation of Muslims by hindering
their integration into the British society.
In his first speech on radicalism
and causes of terrorism, the Prime
Minister said a "hands-off tolerance"
of those who reject Western values
had failed to prevent the rise of Islamic extremism in Britain.
He said Britain has "even tolerated these segregated communities
behaving in ways that run counter

4 accused as
US spies,
killed in Pak
AGENCIES
ISLAMABAD, FEB 5:
Militants in northwest Pakistan shot and killed four men
they accused of spying for the
United States, police said
The bullet-riddled bodies
were
found
Saturday
dumped along a road in
North Waziristan, said senior
police official Sajid Mohmand.
A note attached to one of
the bodies read, "This is the
fate for whoever works for
the US," Mohmand said.
North Waziristan is widely
believed to be a safe haven
for the Pakistani Taliban and
al Qaeda-linked militants.
The district has seen a
sharp increase in aerial
strikes by U.S. unmanned
drones.
Analysts say the targets are
often chosen based on information gathered from local
residents.
Over the past two years,
the Pakistani Taliban have
killed dozens of men in the
tribal region after accusing
them of providing information to Pakistani security
forces and US troops operating in Afghanistan.

Europe to Egypt: After Mubarak, don’t rush election
REUTERS
MUNICH, FEB 5: European powers Germany and Britain urged
Egypt on Saturday to change leaders rapidly but take its time holding
elections, saying traditions of tolerance and fairness had to be built to
make democracy work.
German Chancellor Angela
Merkel, British Prime Minister
David Cameron and European
Council President Herman van
Rompuy reiterated demands for a
rapid "transition" -- a phrase that has

become a diplomatic codeword for
the resignation of President Hosni
Mubarak after 30 years of militarybacked autocracy.
But they said caution would be
needed in the aftermath.
"I don't believe that we solve the
world's problems by flicking a
switch and holding an election ...
Egypt is a classic case in point,"
Cameron told a security conference
in Munich.
"I think a very quick election at
the start of a process of democratization would be wrong," Merkel told

the same meeting, citing her own
experiences as an East German
pro-democracy activist at the time
of the 1989 collapse of the Berlin
Wall.
"If there is an election first, new
structures (of political dialogue and
decision-making) don't have a
chance to develop."
Mubarak, who has pledged to
step down in September, said on
Thursday he believed Egypt would
descend into chaos if he were to give
in to almost two weeks of demands
by an unprecedented popular revolt

that he quit immediately.
He has fashioned himself as the
crucial rampart against Islamist militancy in Egypt and the indispensable player in maintaining a peace
treaty Egypt signed with Israel in
1979.
Political analysts say European
caution about free elections in Egypt
will be seen by many in the Middle
East as evidence of Western anxiety
about the possibility that Islamists
could come to power in the Arab
world's most populous country.
Critics of Western diplomacy in

the region says this anxiety reflects
a double standard, namely that the
West compromises on its democratic ideals when the outcome
would be unfavorable.
Egypt's largest opposition movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, is
tolerated by the authorities despite
being officially banned. The Brotherhood says that, if given the freedom to choose, most of Egypt's 80
million population would choose a
form of Islamic law, although it is
publicly committed to political pluralism.

Bad luck, Yasi’s tail
behind the drenching
AGENCIES

oUT FoR a SWIM: Jemima (seated), alexa and Jack at Brighton grammer’s sports oval.

Finally Cameron realises multiculturalism has failed
PTI

There should be greater scrutiny of
Islamic groups. Frankly, we need a
lot less of the passive tolerance of
recent years and much more active,
muscular liberalism.
-- David Cameron

Egypt remains tense; sabotage
adds new dimension to unrest

British officials
called Zardari
as numbskull
LONDON, FEB 5: In a
damning assessment, Pakistan President Asif Ali
Zardari has been described
by Britishofficials as "highly
corrupt" and a "numbskull".
The assessment of Zardari
was made by officials and
military leaders in the
months after his election as
president in September 2008,
The Daily Telegraph reported citing documents
leaked by whistle-blower
website WikiLeaks.
Sir Jock Stirrup, then
Chief of the Defence staff,t
old American diplomats that
Pakistan was already in an
"arguably worse" state a
month after Zardari’s election.
He said although Zardari
had made "helpful political
noises," he’s clearly a numbskull.
His comments were
echoed by high-ranking
British officials who said
Zardari had "not much sense
of how to govern a country"
and "no goals beyond hanging on to power".
A leaked record of the talks

“

If given the freedom to choose,
most of Egypt’s 80 million population would choose a form of Islamic law.
-- Muslim Brotherhood

goa, Sunday 7,February 2011

to our values," a policy that needs to
be revised.
Addressing a security conference
in Germany, Cameron argued in
favour of developing a stronger national and "muscular liberalism".
Decrying the long-standing policy
of multiculturalism, Cameron also
suggested that there should be
greater scrutiny of Islamic groups
that get public money but do little to
tackle extremism.
"Let’'s properly judge these organisations: Do they believe in universal human rights - including for
women and people of other faiths?
Do they believe in democracy and
the right of people to elect their own

government? Do they encourage integration or separatism?" he asked.
Cameron said what is needed is
the strengthening of national identity and allowing people to say "I am
a Muslim, I am a Hindu, I am a
Christian, but I am a Londoner...
too".
"Frankly, we need a lot less of the
passive tolerance of recent years
and much more active, muscular
liberalism," the prime minister said.
The comments did not go down
well with Muslim groups, some of
whom said the community had
been singled out as part of the problem.
Reacting to the speech, Muslim

Council of Britain’s assistant secretary general Faisal Hanjra said the
stance was a disappointment and
signalled no positive change in the
new government’s approach to
tackling the problem of extremism.
"We were hoping that with a new
government, with a new coalition
that there would be a change in emphasis in terms of counter-terrorism
and dealing with the problem," he
said.
"Again it just seems the Muslim
community is very much in the
spotlight, being treated as part of the
problem as opposed to part of the
solution," he was quoted as saying.
Calling for tough measures

against groups that are seen as promoting extremism, Cameron said
ministers should refuse to engage
with such groups, they should be
denied access to public funds and
barred from spreading their message in universities and prisons.
He said under "doctrine of state
multiculturalism," different cultures
have been encouraged to live separate lives and "we have failed to provide a vision of society to which they
feel they want to belong".
Britain is scrambling for ways to
handle the problem of home-grown
extremists, a phenomenon that is
worrying the country for some years
now.

MELBOURNE, FEB 5:
Australia’s Victoria State has
been lashed by the tail of cyclone Yasi, producing severe
storms and torrential rain.
The moist air from Yasi,
downgraded from a cyclone
to a tropical low after its
winds eased below gale force,
was dragged south in an arc
from Queensland's northwest, through Alice Springs
and as far south as Melbourne.
A large cold front heading
north cooled the warm monsoonal air and caused huge
cloudbursts that dumped up
to 200 millimetres of rain in
just two hours over Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Moisture remaining from
cyclone Anthony was also
hanging over the state and
contributed to the deluge.
Bureau of Meteorology
senior forecaster Stephen
King said the weather was
unusual for Melbourne.
''We have had extremely
high moisture levels in the air
from both ex-cyclone Anthony and Yasi … Then we
had a [cold] trough yesterday
that triggered the thunderstorm activity,'' Mr King said.
''This sort of rain coming
from the tropics, you get it in
Sydney and Brisbane, it's not
that unusual, but to get it this
far south is probably quite
rare.''

Melbourne's south-eastern
suburbs were among the
worst-affected areas. Lyndhurst recorded 180 millimetres of rain in the 24 hours to
9am yesterday.
Mildura, in the state's
north-west, recorded 142 millimetres - the town's highest
daily rainfall total on record.
Ex-cyclone Yasi was yesterday hovering over the
Northern Territory, about 430
kilometres south-west of
Mount Isa, causing heavy
rain in far west Queensland.
It is expected to continue to
spread moisture into southeastern Australia today, but
its influence will diminish by
tomorrow.
While the wild weather
across Australia in the past
two weeks may feel like an
end-of-days movie, experts
say it is the product of bad
luck and normal long-term
weather patterns.
Environmental scientist
Stewart Franks at the University of Newcastle said cyclonic
activity and recent major
flooding in Australia's eastern
states were the result of La
Nina activity, which has been
intensified by Pacific Decadal
Oscillation, or low-frequency
cooling in the mid-latitudes.
Associate Professor Franks
rejected the idea that category-5 cyclone Yasi was unprecedented. He said cyclone
Mahina in north Queensland
in 1899 was stronger.

13

Goa I Sunday 06, February 2011

www.oheraldo.in

sports

India's campaign at the Fed Cup turned worst as it
was relegated to Group II of the Asia/Oceania Zone
after losing the play-off tie 1-2 to Chinese Taipei in
Nonthaburi on Saturday. Ashvarya lost 3-6, 3-6 to
Ting-Fei Juan and Poojashree went down fighting 57, 1-6 against Chin-Wei Chan.

I pin the blame for my departure from
Liverpool squarely on the shoulders of
Tom Hicks and George Gillett. The
club's ousted owners are responsible
for Liverpool's worst start to a league
season.
-- Fernando Torres

Navdurga win
Ponda Youth
U-14 cricket title
HERALD SPORTS DESK
Panjim, Feb 5: Navdurga
High School, Madkai won
the top honors winning the
under-14 finals of Ponda
Youth Inter-Schools Cricket
Tournament beating Symbiosis organized by Sports
Excell to commemorate the
Silver Jubilee of GVM’s
GGPR College, Ponda.
Navdurga won the toss,
elected to bat and scored 48
for the loss of 4 wickets in
their allotted 8 overs with
opener Diptesh scoring 11
and their consistent performer Vikrant scoring 13 not
out with 2 boundaries.
Siddanth, Saiesh, Satyam
and Pranesh claimed a
wicket each of Navdurga.
Symbiosis had Siddanth
scoring 11 runs and was the
only player who put some resistance to Navdurga.
The strong bowling line up
of Akshay, Vikrant, Sarvesh
and Sanket helped the Shiroda boys from scoring at
will as in their previous
matches. Navdurga won by 6
runs and rightly Vikrant was
declared the man-of-the
tournament in the junior category while Siddanth of
Symbiosis was the man-ofthe finals.
In the semi-finals of under16 category, MIBK Khandepar got the better of
Government High School,
Bethoda to meet Dada Vaidya
HS Curti who defeated Pragati Vidyalaya Borim.
Ramnath and Sunny of

MIBK put together an opening partnership of 36 runs in
the overall total of 77 for 4 at
the end of their stipulated
overs. In reply, Nilesh (15),
Suraj (18) and Vinay (16)
tried to overcome the MIBK
boys. However, they fell short
by 9 runs in which Sunny
claimed 2 wickets and was
declared the man-of-the
match.
In the second semi-final,
Dada Vaidya had to sweat it
out to make it to the finals
beating Pragati Vidyalaya in
an exciting encounter.
Initially, the match ended
up in a tie and then the super
over was applied do decide
the winner to enter the finals.
Dada Vaidya had scored 73
for 5 with Chandresh scoring
16. Anwar scored 15 not out
and the successful bowler
was Yogesh for Pragati who
claimed 2 wickets. Pratap
scored 24 and Kunal 15 for to
tie the match. However, in
the supper over Pragati won
the toss and elected to bat
and could muster only 10
runs while the winning team
Dada Vaidya scored 11 runs
with one ball to spare.
Pradeep Gaonkar, secretary of Goa Vidyaprasarak
Mandal was the chief guest
and distributed the prizes
alongwith Principal Kamat of
GVM Higher Secondary
School. Principal P. M.
Bhende welcomed. Director
of Physical Education of
GVM GGPR College, Betty
D’Silva proposed the vote of
thanks.

Dhempe, Salgaocar
move up

HERALD SPORTS DESK

Panjim, Feb 5 : Dhempe College and V M Salgaoncar College won their first round
matches against Goa College
of Pharmacy and SV's S Caculo College respectively in
Goa University cricket championship on Friday.
Dhempe beat Goa College
of Pharmacy by 59 runs.
After winning the toss,
Dhempe decided to bat first
and scored 167 for 6. Akram
Shaikh 43, Pramit Naik 29,
Vinod Sutar 20, Krishnaraj
Khandolkar 19, Shaish Morajkar 15. Ved Pawar 3 for 26,
Sameer Velip 2 for 23 and
Avinash Gaude 1 for 24.

Mapusa, Feb 5: Agasaim
Youth Club recorded a convincing 5-1 win over Merces
Sports Club in GFA’s 2nd Division, at DSYA ground,
Santa Cruz on Saturday.
Agasaim led 2-1 at the
breather.
Rudy Godinho scored a
brace, while Alinton Vaz,
Francis Silveria and Abdul
also got their names on the
scoresheet for Agasaim.
Kiran Kari scored a consolation goal for Merces.
Astrocio Fernandes was
booked for Agasaim and Agnelo Carbral of Merces was
also booked.
In GFA’s U-14 league at Assolna ground, Snow’s Football Academy defeated
Ambelim Sports Club 2-0
and at Rosary ground,
United Boys of Palolem
trounced Colmorod Ratwaddo Sports Club 6-1.
Palolem led 2-1 at half time
after going down to an early
goal from Colmorod.

Margao, Feb 5: Curtorim
Gymkhana defeated Wilred
Leisure Sports Club 2-1 to
claim top honours in South
Goa Zone GFA Second Division play-off at Cuncolim
school ground on Saturday.
All goals came in the first half.
Curtorim
Gymkhana
turned the tables right from
the word go in a scintillating
fashion with midfielder Mariano Rebello and Agnelo Colaco being the chief architects
of Curtorim’s victory. Both
played a key role in spraying
accurate passes to keep the
forwards busy.
Coach Alex Dias played a
strong side and the players
responded well with Agnelo
Colaco and Mariano Rebello
being on the scoreboard.
Wilred Leisure, on the other
had, were eager to put an improved performance and also
avenge the earlier defeat in the
Second Division League. But
they did not succeed.
It was only in the 16th
minute that game came alive
as midfielder Agnelo came

sure and trouble the rival defence with well orchestrated
raids. They nearly found further success but striker Melvin
Fernandes failed to beat
Wilred Leisure goalkeeper
Mohammed Shaikh. Curtorim
Gymkhana created many forays into the rival territory but
Mariano Rebello’s try deflected off the rival goalkeeper.
Curtorim Gymkhana continued in the same vein after
change of ends but could not
add to their tally. Wilred
Leisure tried to neutralise the
lead and managed to create
chances but they could not
score due to some tight marking by Alleulia Fernandes.
Wilred Leisure were unlucky soon after the resumption when Nickson Castana’s
swif shot was blocked by Curtorim Gymkhana goalkeeper
Johnson Bhagat.
Curtorim
Gymkhana
spurned a golden opportunity when Mariano Rebello
drew out Wilred Leisure
goalkeeper
Mohammed
Shaikh but shot wide with an
empty goal before him.
In the 85th minute, Wilred

Chandor regrouped quickly
and fought back gallantly with
Cruz Gomes putting his team
on equal terms in the 6th
minute with a stiff grounder.
Unfazed
about
the
equaliser, Verna struck
rhythm with their forwards
showing good application,
going all out and succeeding
with Anthony Rego striking
the second time to give his
team a 2-1 cushion.
Crossing over, Chandor
put up a better display and
their forwards and midfielders worked in tandem to put
the rival defence under pressure. Their persistent raids
paid off when Cruz Gomes

punished the rival goalkeeper with an adroit placement.
With the scores level 2-2
draw, the teams went all out
in search of the match-winner but failed to get the result.
In the tie-breaker, Sammy
Dias, Leo Menezes, Ashward
Fernandes, Soccorro Fernandes, Savio Fernandes and
Suraj Zambodkar were on the
target for Chandor Club while
Vijal Rego, Ajay Satardekar,
Basil Rego and Marian Rego
converted for Verna.
Anthony Rego of Verna
and Cruz Gomes of Chandor
were awarded best players
awards respectively.

dominated the proceedings
in both sessions and could
have won by a bigger margin
had Rosario Ferreira’s tries
not hit the crossbar.
Clayson Pereira was in his
elements as he troubled the
rival defence but was unlucky
as his try kissed the horizontal.

Crossing over, Snows Football Academy went all out and
found success when Rosario
Pereira bulged the net off a
pass from Clayson Pereira.
Snows’s insurance goal
came midway in the second
half when Daniel Gomes slotted past the rival goalkeeper.

Chandor move into semis

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

Margao, Feb 5 : Chandor
Club made their way into the
semi-final of 3rd All-Goa
Wilred Leisure Cup inter-village football tournament organised by Wilred Leisure
Sports Club easing past
Verna Sports Club 7-6 via the
tie-breaker in an absorbing
quarter-final at Curtorim
ground on Saturday. Verna
wee leading 2-1 at half time.
Verna started well going
into the lead in the very first
minute when striker Anthony
Rego punished the rival goalkeeper with a pile driver.
Stung by that early setback,

Snows score past Ambelim

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

The Goa University baseball team for All-India Inter-University
Baseball Championship with Milton Fernandes.

up with a superb strike from
outside the box to put Curtorim into the lead.
Wilred Leisure did create
some decent opportunities but
strikers Sertorio Monteiro and
Nickson Castana failed to get
past the Curtorim Gymkhana
defensive line marshalled by
Alleulia Fernandes.
Curtorim Gymkhana had
scoring opportunities but
striker Melvin Fernandes
squandered a sitter.
Wilred Lesiure restored
parity through Andrew Colaco after he received a
through pass from playmaker Peter Pereira.
Stunned by the equaliser,
Curtorim Gymkhana went
into the attacking mode and
repeatedly raided the rival
citadel but their strikers frittered away scoring chances.
Curtorim Gymkhana regained the lead in the 32nd
minute when midfielder
Mariano Rebello beat the
rival goalkeeper with a snap
shot after he received a pass
from Agnelo Collaco.
The goal helped Curtorim
Gymkhana to pile up pres-

Margao, Feb 5 : Snows’ Football Academy, Raia blanked
Ambelim Sports Club 2-0 in
GFA under-14 league at Assolna ground, on Saturday.
There was no score at half time.
Snows Football Academy

Leisure missed a sure opportunity to level the score but
substitute Charles Dias was
the culprit as he failed to beat
the Curtorim goalkeeper off
an assist from Peter Pereira.
With this win, Curtorim
Gymkhana qualified for the
final play-off and topped the
group with six points from
two matches while Wilred
Leisure suffered their first
defeat and have no points
from one match.
Curtorim Gymkhana coach
Alex Dias was elated with his
side’s performance. “I have always advocated an all-out attacking approach and today
the boys implemented our
strategy perfectly. It is a great
victory as my boys promised
me to give their best and also
it gives me great satisfaction
that every one worked hard.
This victory is one which I can
dedicate to the villagers from
Curtorim and club president
Sebastiao Baretto. I also congratulate each member of the
team for their commitment,
hard work and dedication
they displayed in the match,”
Dias added.

HERALD SPORTS DESK
Ponda, Feb 5: SRS Computer Services will organise
the third Ponda Taluka level
chess tournament for school
students from Ponda on February 13 at Wagle High
School, Mangueshi from 8.30
a.m. to 4.30 p.m.
Std V to X students from
Ponda High Schools may
contact Sagar Sakordekar on
9422593131 or Amogh
Namshikar on 9422455806.
Spot entries will not be accepted.

14

“

www.oheraldo.in

sports

“

We conceded three goals. Credit to the Chirag forward line. Joshimar's playing style is
similar to Odafe Okolie. I am, however, very
happy with my team's performance as we
won the match inspite of Odafe's absence."
-- Vincent Subramaniam, Churchill coach

Goa I Sunday 06, February 2011

Where are the young players?
Wayne Rooney played in the
youth leagues. You can’t expect the National coach to find
players in the bushes.
-- Bob Houghton.

SNAPSHOT
Chloe, Snehal win gold

Panjim: Chloe Charlene Fernandes (50m) (MES
HSS, Vasco) Snehal Divakar (30m) (GVM HSS,
Ponda) clinched gold medals in under-19 category
in the ongoing 56th National School Games Archery
Championship at Balewadi, Pune.
Chloe also secured a silver medal (30m) in the Indian round category.
In the individual category, Chloe Charlene Fernandes also secured a gold medal while Snehal divakar
secured a silver medal.
In the team championship Goa secured a silver
medal with Chloe Charledne Fernandes, Snehal Divakr, Ravina Naik and Kirti Umarye being the team
members.

St Andrew’s win NG basketball

MAPUSA : St Andrew’s High School, Goa Velha were
victorious in boys U-14 North District basketball, organized by DSYA at Peddem complex on Saturday.
Lok shikshant High School, Dargal, Pernem were
the runners-up.
In the girls final, St Anthony’s High School, Monte de
Guirim defeated St Theresa High School, Candolim.
In the zonal cricket U-19 girls final, Government
High School, Sanquelim overcame St Xavier’s High
School, Mapusa.
St Joseph’s School, Calangute moved into the semi-finals of the U-13 primary school football festival tournament, defeating Saraswat School 2-0. Daniel Fernandes
blasted in from close range to open the scoring and
shortly after Neil Joy shot from distance to seal the win.

Nat Games Probables win
MAPUSA: The National Games Probable XI scored a
2-1 victory over Sesa Football Academy in a friendly
match at Duler stadium, here on Saturday. Cavin
Lobo and Pratesh Shirodkar got the goals for the
National Games XI.
The match was played at such a high tempo with
players of both teams trying to impress their coaches
that the management of both teams decided to call
a premature end to proceedings midway into the
second half to avoid unnecessary injuries.
“Both sides played extremely well. I am very impressed with the standard of play,” remarked National Games coach Anthony D’Souza who is also
Clifford Chukwuma’s understudy at Sesa Football
Academy set up.

Vasco Club for all-India tourneys
MAPUSA: Vasco Sports Club will pack their bags and
leave for the FDF football tournament in Bhopal on
Monday. The tournament has already started, but
Vasco are seeded into the quarter-finals and will
play their first match on February 9.
The tournament is set to finish on February 12 and
Vasco are expected to travel directly for an All-India football tournament in Assam, which starts on February 18.
“We are entering the tournaments in order to prepare our team for the 2nd Division I-League, which
will kick off shortly. After these matches we will
know where we stand and what we can improve
on,” reasoned out Vasco coach Gavin Araujo.

5-a-side football at Raia
MARGAO: The Young Boys of Duglor will organise
their 6th all-Goa five-a-side football tournament on
Febraury 13 and 20 at manora ground, raia. Rs
10,000 (winners), rs 8,000 (runners-up) and Rs
2,000 (semi-final losers) will be awarded. Detaila
may be obtained from Mario on 9850477453 or Valent on 9850455283.

Tennis ball cricket

PANJIM: The Sunshine Sports Club of Carambolim
will organise their second all-Goa tennis ball floddlight cricket tournament on February 18, 19, 20 at
Carambolim panchcyat ground. Rs 12,000 (winners), Rs 6,000 (runners-up) and Rs 2,000 (semifinal losers) and other prizes will be awarded. In all,
24 teams will participate. Teams may contact
Narendra on 9822153107.

Man-of-the match: Edmar Figueira (Pune)
PTI
Kolkata: Churchill Brothers took full advantage of a
weak Chirag United defence to register a 5-3 away
win in a round 13 I-League
match at Yuba Bharati Krirangan here on Saturday.
Churchill led 2-1 at halftime
Kayne Vincent, who was
adjudged man-of-the-match,
struck a brace (10th and
78th), while Steven Dias
(21st), Boima Karpeh (49th)
and Amauri Neto (70th) fired
one each in the high-octane
clash.
Chirag United reduced the
margin through Elijah Junior
(19th and 65th) and Malswamtulunga (57th).

The Goan giants with 26
points are now clinging to
third spot on the table as the
big win meant that they have
the highest goal difference
(19), having scored 33 goals
already.
Chirag United have 18
points and are placed at the
seventh spot.
Playing without their star
striker and the leading goal
scorer of the tournament,
Odafa Okolie, who is nursing
an injury, Churchill Brothers
took an early lead when their
New
Zealand recruit fired in
from a Dias pass.
But Chirag scored the
equaliser through Junior
after Denson Devadas set it

up in the midfield.
In fact, Chirag could have
taken a lead but Jerry Zirsangha's nice shot was
thwarted by Churchill goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya.
After the break, Karpeh
struck from an Amauri
pass four minutes into the
second period to lead the
goal rush as Churchill took
a 3-1 lead. But Chirag made
it 2-3 with Malswamtulunga finding the net in the
57th minute from a
Gouranga Dutta cross from
the left.
A penalty in favour of Chirag then helped them bring
the match on an even keel. In

the 64th minute, Joshimar's header from a Lalkamal Bhowmick's cross
found Churchill defender
L Robert's hand inside the
box and referee Deepak
Singh
awarded
the
penalty in the home team's
favour.
Junior struck from the
spot to make it 3-3 but the
listless Chirag United defence failed to hold off the attack and let in two goals
subsequently.
Amauri broke the deadlock in a 70th minute goal,
while eight minutes later Vincent put the final nail in the
coffin for the eighth goal of
the match.

DBO Futsal Festival 2011
HERALS SPORTS REPORTER
Panjim, Feb 5: Bibiano Sporting, Jesus Nazareth and Don
Bosco clinched the futsal titles at the first-ever DBO Futsal Festival 2011 at Fr
Benedict Furtado indoor stadium, Don Bosco, here.
Don Bosco A, Jesus
Nazareth and Bibiano Sporting won the titles in under-14,
under-19 and the open categories respectively.
In the under-14 finals, Don
Bosco A defeated the B team
3-1, with Akeraj Martins who
was awarded the most promising player, scoring one goal
while skillfully controlling the
game and Dayne Britto scoring two. Sabino Pereira
scored for the runners-up.
In the under-19 category,
Jesus Nazareth got the better
of M7 B 2-1 to clinch the title.

Mumbai, JCT share spoils; Pune win
AGENCIES
Kholapur, Feb 5: It was not a
happy ending for Mumbai
FC as they were forced to
share points after playing a 11 draw with JCT in a Round
XIII match at Sahu Maharaj
ground, Kolhapur on Saturday.
It was certainly not the result Mumbai were aiming for
as a dejected Mumbai manager Henry Picardo said,
“This was not the result that
we wanted. We still see ourselves at the fifth spot, which

could have been better with a
win.’’
In an evenly poised match,
the first half saw both teams
taking an aggressive approach, but the Mumbai outfit did have a slight advantage
over their opponents.
After some half hearted
chances being created, but
no huge misses in the first
half, it was the second half
which gave the spectators
some delight. After a goalless
first half Mumbai came back
with a fresh perspective on

the ground as their striker
Abhishek Yadav finally
looked to be in sync with the
team.
Mumbai finally broke the
jinx in the 57th minute
through Ebi Sukore. Mumbai midfielder Sukore dribbled past two JCT players
and placed the ball safely into
the post.
After taking the lead, just
three minutes later, Yadav got
a golden opportunity to extend Mumbai’s lead. Striker
Henry Ezeh ran through solo

but his attempt was stopped
well by the JCT custodian.
JCT earned a lifeline and
came from behind to level
terms in the 83rd minute. A
misunderstanding between
Mumbai custodian Amit
Singha Roy and a defender
saw JCT’s Amandeep Singh
taking advantage as he planted
the ball over the goalkeeper’s
head to snatch a point.
Mumbai FC’s Ebi Sukore
was adjudged man-of-the
match.
“We are very upset with one

point. We could have gone to
the fourth position had we
won but we are still on fifth
position. We want to catch
up with the leaders. But we
still have time for the next
match against Air India as it
is definitely going to be a
very vital game for us,”
added Picardo.
Pune FC beat Indian Arrows 3-0 with Arata Izumi
(63rd), Edmar Figueira (71st
and 78th) being the scorers at
Balewadi Sports Complex,
Pune in another match.

The open category finals was
dominated by Bibiano Sporting, capping the luck of Fluke
Winners who had managed to
fight through to the final stage.
Daniel (5th minute) and Bibiano (10th minute) sealed their
fate scoring goals and confirming their position as the winners
of the Futsal Festival.
The chief guest for the
presentation ceremony was
Peter Vaz, Mangind Director,
Sporting Club the Goa and
the chief sponsor of the
event. The guests of honour
were Elvis Gomes, Senior
vice-president of GFA, Fr Ian
Figueiredo, Provincial of the
Salesian Konkan Province,
Fr Paul D’Souza, ViceProvincial and Rector of Don
Bosco Panjim, Fr Willie Fernandes, Administrator of
Don Bosco and Manager of
Don Bosco College, Panjim.

5-a-side
football at
Raia
MARGAO: The Young
Boys of Duglor will organise
their 6th all-Goa five-a-side
football tournament on
Febraury 13 and 20 at
manora ground, Raia. Rs
10,000 (winners), rs 8,000
(runners-up) and Rs 2,000
(semi-final losers) will be
awarded. Detaila may be obtained from Mario on
9850477453 or Valent on
9850455283

Kolkata, Feb 5: Mohun Bagan will
lock horns with East Bengal in a
high voltage derby encounter on
Sunday to be played at Salt Lake
Stadium, Kolkata.
Lots of hype has already been
generated for the match with spectators turnout expected to be
around 1 lakh. In the league table
East Bengal are way ahead with 30
points, 12 points ahead of Mohun
Bagan. Both teams have played 12
matches each.
Few National team players have
joined both the teams, though
Mohun Bagan seem to have benefited from the latest joining as their

defence had been shaky right from
the start of the season. Their defence line-up will likely be Surkumar Singh, Deepak Mandal, Anwar
Ali and Mohanraj which should
bring stability to their defence.
With Shilton as goalkeeper,
Rakesh Masih will be the holding
medio, while Jayanta Sen or Manish Maithani will be assigned the job
of attacking midfielder.
Technical Director Subhash
Bhowmick will chose from Snehasish Chakraborty, Ishfaq Ahmed or
Satish Kumar as the two wingers.
Barreto and Chidi will be the twoman forward line for Mohun Bagan.
Mohun Bagan has been scoring

goals with players like Edeh Chidi,
Jose Ramirez Barreto and Muritala
Ali upfront and they have so far
scored 16 goals together, but they
have let in 13 goals which has been
the main concern for Subhash
Bhowmick.
East Bengal on the other hand
are at the top of the league table and
playing consistently good football
throughout the season.
Their Asian recruit, Tolgay has
been in the peak of his form as he
has already scored 9 goals in this
tournament.
Robin Singh will miss tomorrow's
match due to suspension and Sushil
Singh will likely be Tolgey's striking

partner.
East Bengal has been making
most of their moves down the right
flank as Naoba Singh and Sonju
Pradhan seemed to combine well
down that side whereas their left
flank is a bit of concern. Penn and
Mehtab Hussain, however, have
been the pillars of East Bengal team
and whether East Bengal will manage to get 3 points tomorrow will depend on the performance of the two
midfielders.
In defence, Uga Okpara and Gurwinder Singh will be the two centralbacks with Soumik Dey and Naoba
Singh being the two wing backs.
In last year's I-League, Mohun

Bagan beat East Bengal 5-3 in the first
match with Chidi Edeh alone scoring
4 goals whereas in the return leg
Mohun Bagan once again emerged
victorious and won the match 2-1.
East Bengal coach Trevor Morgan said, "We will look for 3 points
from tomorrow's match. The only
difference with Mohun Bagan is
that their National team players are
automatic choice in their first XI but
in our case most of them have to sit
out because we have an otherwise
set team. We are confident of winning the match," Technical Director,
Subhash Bhowmick, said.
The match will be telecaste live at
3.30 pm on M Khobor as per AIFF.

15

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sports

“

Openers Abhinav Mukund and Robin
Uthappa bulldozed the North Zone bowlers
to script a brilliant run chase as South Zone
clinched the Duleep Trophy with a day to
spare.

Ryder ton
helps NZ to
face-saving
win over Pak

AGENCIES

Arsenal's Ivorian-Swiss defender Johan Djourou (right) scores the second goal of the match between Newcastle United and Arsenal at St James' Park, Newcastle on Saturday.

London, Feb 5: Newcastle
United produced an astonishing fightback to draw 4-4
at home to Arsenal on Saturday after trailing 4-0 as a
record 38 goals were scored
in the Premier
League
on
Saturday.
Secondplaced Arsenal
were
four-up after
26 minutes
with Robin
van
Persie
twice on target.
But after Abou Diaby was
sent off in the 50th minute,
the home side struck four
times to grab an unlikely
point and leave the Gunners
four points behind leaders
Manchester United who play
at Wolverhampton Wanderers later.
Carlos Tevez scored a hattrick before halftime for
third-placed Manchester City
in a 3-0 win against West
Bromwich Albion, twice converting from the penalty spot,
as City close the gap on
United to five points.
Fifth-placed Tottenham
Hotspur moved level on
points with Chelsea after substitute Niko Kranjcar’s last-

gasp winner in a 2-1 home
victory over Bolton Wanderers while sixth-placed Sunderland suffered a 3-2 defeat
at Stoke City after twice leading.
Louis Saha scored four
times in Everton’s 5-3 home
win against Blackpool, Wigan
Athletic beat Blackburn
Rovers 4-3 to edge out of the
bottom three and Aston Villa
and Fulham shared four
goals at Villa Park.
The 38 goals
s c o r e d
eclipsed the
previous Premier League
record of 36 on
a single Saturday set on November 27 last
year.
Arsenal
were left kicking themselves
as they blew the chance to
keep the pressure on United
when a fourth consecutive
Premier League victory appeared to be in the bag.
Theo Walcott fired the
Gunners ahead in the first
minute and Johan Djourou
headed a second soon after
before Van Persie’s double
had some home fans heading
for the exits.
However, Diaby’s sending
off turned the tide against the
visitors who fell apart after
Joey Barton’s 68th minute
penalty gave Newcastle a
glimmer of hope.
Leon Best made it 4-2,
Barton struck again from the
penalty spot and Cheik Tiote

scored the equaliser after 87
minutes with a stunning volley from 20 metres.

Auckland, Feb 5: Jesse
Ryder scored his second one
day international century to
help New Zealand earn a
face-saving 57-run victory
over Pakistan at Eden Park
on Saturday in the sixth and
final match of their series.
The win was just New
Zealand's second in their last
16 completed ODIs and was
sorely needed to give them a
hint of self belief before they
head to the World Cup in India,
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Ryder scored 107 and combined in a 123-run partnership
with Martin Guptill (44), while
a 120-run partnership between Scott Styris (58 not out)
and Nathan McCullum (65) at
the end of the innings helped
Kiwis to an imposing 311 for 7.
Wicketkeeper
Kamral
Akmal top-scored for the visitors, who held an unassailable
3-1 lead in the series before the
match at Eden Park, with 89,
including three glorious successive sixes into the lower
deck at the ground.
Afridi (44) also provided some
late jitters for the New Zealanders as he combined with Sohail Tanvir (30) before being
caught by Nathan McCullum
off Hamish Bennett, who finished with for four for 46.
James Franklin captured
three for 50 to give the small
crowd something to cheer
about when Pakistan were
dismissed for 254.

“

Goa I Sunday 06, February 2011

“Ronaldo needs to learn from the
best player in the world, Messi. He
should learn how he plays and
leave behind his arrogant attitude.
-- Walter Pandiani, striker

16

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www.oheraldo.in

sports

My only concern is the fitness of the guys.
If they can last the entire tournament without injuries, we could certainly regain the
World Cup
-- Anil Kumble

Fitness only
concern for
India: Kumble

PTI
Bangalore, Feb 5: Former
Test captain Anil Kumble
reckons it is India's best
chance to lift the ODI World
Cup after 1983 but fitness of
players would be a major concern and ending the 28-yearold jinx would depend on
whether the squad remains
injury-free during the event.
"My only concern is the fitness of the guys. If they can
last the entire tournament
without injuries, we could
certainly regain the Cup,"
Kumble told PTI in an interview ahead of the February
19 to April 2 mega-event to be
held in the sub-continent.
Kumble said along with
India, defending champions
Australia, South Africa, and Sri
Lanka are the other favourites
for the coveted trophy.
"We have a very bright
chance, probably it is our best
opportunity to win the Cup,"
said Kumble.

Kumble weighed the advantages that India had to
win back the title, last won by
Kapil's Devils in 1983.
"We have lot of advantages
going into the tournament.
The form of the players is encourgaing. The quality of
players is good. There are
some all-rounders as well
who can chip in with both bat
and ball," emphasised Kumble, who was part of the Indian World Cup campaigns in
1996 (at home), 1999 (England), 2003 (South Africa) and
2007 (West Indies).
India's most successful
bowler feels the sub-continental dustbowls would be of
great advantage to India.
"Besides the form and
quality of players, the pitches
would suit our game. We
know our conditions too well.
We know what we can expect," said Kumble, who as
president of the Karnataka
State Cricket Association, has
dedicated his time for the

conduct of the World Cup
matches in the City.
Talking about the disappointment of losing the 1996
semifinals and the 2003 finals,
Kumble said: "We came very
close to winning. It was disappointing that we could not get
to do what we were capable
as a team. Each time we got
close and lost, we knew we
had to wait for a long time as
the World Cup is played only
once in four years."
Asked if Sachin who will be
playing his sixth successive
World Cup, will be under pressure to deliver in front of the
home crowd, Kumble said:
"He has been around for 21
years. So there is no question
of him being under pressure."
"He is playing at his best
that I have seen. He has
looked relaxed in all the
matches that I have watched.
If he plays the World Cup like
any other ODI, he should be
scoring lots of runs," said
Kumble.

IPL scam:
Modi's fate
on Feb 15
AGENCIES
Chennai, Feb 5: The Chennai
police has given time till February 15 for four persons accused
in
a
funds
misappropriation case, also
involving suspended Indian
Premier League Commissioner (IPL) Lalit Modi, to appear before it for inquiry.
City Police Commissioner
T Rajendiran said that the
fate of Modi, who had twice
refused to accept police summons, will also be decided
after February 15.
"We have given them time
till February 15," said Rajendiran in Chennai.
The accused had earlier
been asked to appear for an
inquiry either on January 25,
26 or 28, any of the dates suitable for them.
The four accused who are
given an extended time are Harish Krishnamachari of Mumbai,
World Sports Group office-bearers -- Venu Nair, Andrew Georgio and Seamus O'Brien.
The case was filed by BCCI
Secretary N Srinivasan, who
lodged a complaint last year
against Modi, charging him
with misappropriation of Rs
468 crore, mainly in allotting
media rights and free commercial rights.

Hayden is the biggest
chicken-hearted: Bhajji
Says nice ploy by Mathew to sell his book

PTI
New Delhi, Feb 5: Indian offspinner Harbhajan Singh
today lashed out Mathew
Hayden terming him the
‘biggest chicken hearted
cricketer’ he has ever seen
and said the Australian's remarks against him for missing the Nagpur Test were ‘a
lot of crap’ to sell his book.
"I don't know what these
Australian cricketers are up
to? Even Ricky Ponting wrote
a lot of crap to sell his book and
now this guy Hayden is doing
so," Harbhajan fumed while
giving his reaction to PTI.
The former Australian
opener in his autobiography
‘Standing My Ground’ had

said that erstwhile Indian captain Sourav Ganguly and
Harbhajan chickened out
after having a look at the
bouncy Nagpur strip during
Australia's tour of 2004. He had
even expressed his surprise in
the manner in which Harbhajan had "food poisoning" on the
eve of that Test which Australia won convincingly.
"Who is Hayden to judge
Harbhajan's calibre. I don't know
what he is smoking these days.
Probably he was in some kind of
trip when he wrote all that rubbish. Should I now give Hayden
some money to keep quiet?"
If that wasn't enough,
Harbhajan said that he is still

Somdev moves Behave yourself:
into semis
Ganguly to Hayden
AGENCIES
Johannesburg, Feb 5: Commonwealth and Asian Games
gold-medallist Somdev Devvarman advanced to the
semi-final of the South
African Open after he fought
back from a set down to beat

local hope Rik de Voest.
The 25-year-old Indian star
triumphed 3-6, 7-6, 6-1 after a
138-minute battle at the Montecasino entertainment centre in Johannesburg on
Saturday.
With this victory, Somdev
made amends for his last
year's outing in the ATP
World Tour event in Johannesburg where he was eliminated in straight sets by
Spain's David Ferrer at the
quarter-final stage.
"Rik is a great player whom
I got on top of only in the closing stages and now I must
face another South African
(Izak van der Merwe) for a
place in the final," said
Somdev.
"We share the same coach
and practice a lot together so
we know pretty well how the
other plays. It is great to
reach the last four of such a
prestigious tournament as
the South African Open."

PTI
Kolkata, Feb 5: Former India
captain Sourav Ganguly today hit
back at Matthew Hayden for
claiming that he had chickened
out of 2004 Nagpur Test because
of the green wicket there, saying
his record on such pitches in Australia would tell a different story.
"I request him (Hayden) to
behave like an international
player," Ganguly said.
Drawing comparison of the Nagpur wicket with that of
Gabba in Brisbane, Hayden had written that Ganguly's late
withdrawal was due "greentrackitis, where you develop a severe intolerance to green wickets likely to give plenty of
headaches as a batsman".
Ganguly reminded Hayden that he had scored a hundred
at Gabba besides playing important roles in India's wins
later.
"He remembered Brisbane in Nagpur. Just want to remind
him of my hundred in Brisbane in the first Test. Also since
2003, we have beaten them (Australia) everytime in Brisbane.
Me and Bhajji have been important part of Indian team on all
those wins," he said.
Ganguly, who was the Indian captain, pulled out of the Nagpur Test, citing a leg-muscle injury. The home side was trailing
0-1 in the four-match Test series.

I don't know what these Australian cricketers are up to?
Even Ricky Ponting wrote a lot
of crap to sell his book and
now this guy Hayden is doing
so
-- Harbhajan Singh
willing to bowl if Hayden has have got him out."
the heart enough to face him. Referring to Hayden's term
"This is an open challenge. of "Greentrackitis", HarbhaWhenever and wherever Hay- jan said, "I have scored half
den wants me to bowl at him, century even in Australian
I am ready. Does he have the soil. May be Hayden has this
courage to face me. Because, habit of conviniently forgetwhenever I have seen him bat ting the achievements of Inagainst me, he always had a dian cricketers. At the end of
petrified look. Just check the the day, he doesn't have the
record books in case you want qualification to judge the calto know how many times I ibre of Indian cricketers."

“

Goa I Sunday 06, February 2011

I almost thought of quitting international cricket when I was
dropped from both the Test and
ODI teams last year.
-- Yuvraj Singh

Afridi named Pak skipper
AGENCIES
Karachi, Feb 5: The PCB
have named Shahid Afridi as
captain of the ICC Cricket
World Cup team, ending speculation over who will lead

Pakistan in the tournament.
Pakistan were the only
country among the 14 contesting nations who did not
announce the skipper when
they named their 15-man
squad in January.

OHERALDO

Pg III

INDIA

GOA,•SUNDAY, 6 FEBRUARY, 2011

Panchayati Raj bedrock of
democracy, Sonia tells eves

Congress President Sonia Gandhi inaugurates an auditorium at Lalganj during a visit to her constituency Raebareli on Friday.
PTI
RAE BARELI, FEB 5

Congress president Sonia
Gandhi today asked women
panchayat representatives to
prepare themselves to face challenges and overcome social hurdles while performing their
duties.
“ Pa n c h a y a t i Ra j i s t h e
bedrock of democracy. As
women representatives face
various social hurdles, it was a
major challenge before them
to execute their responsibilities
successfully,” she told a Panchayati Raj meet at Kathwara
block here.
She said that to strengthen
the panchayati raj system in
the country, the UPA government has taken a number of
steps.
“A number of amendments
have been carried out in the
Panchayati Raj Act by the UPA

Bangladesh
hands over 2
ULFA leaders

government to empowering the
local bodies chalk out basic development schemes and execute them,” she said, adding
that provision for direct devolution of funds in their accounts
have also been made.
Pointing out that 50 per cent
of the panchayat seats have
been reser ved for women,
Gandhi said, “You have an important role to play in the development of a village and now
this can be done as per the expectations of local residents.”
S h e s a i d p l a c e s w h e re
elected representatives were
dedicated, more development
was taking place.
The Congress president said
it was their duty to ensure that
benefits of ambitious schemes
like Indira Awas Yojna reach the
needy.
To drive home her point,
Gandhi said, “The dedication

Abhi’s fans plan
birthday surprise

PTI

PTI

SHILLONG, FEB 5

MUMBAI, FEB

Bangladeshi security forces
today pushed back two top ULFA
leaders through the Indo-Bangla
border in Meghalaya where BSF
took their custody, official
sources said.
ULFA 'Captain' Antu Chaudang and 'Second Lieutenant'
Pradeep Chetia were pushed
back through the Dawki border
early this morning, the sources
said They were being taken to
Guwahati by a team of Assam
Police.
In an e-mail to the media on
December 18 last, ULFA 'Publicity Secretary' Arunudoy Dohotia
had claimed that these two leaders had been picked up by Indian
intelligence agencies in
Bangladesh and since then the
duo’s whereabouts were not
known.
Chaudang was the third top
ULFA leader on the run after 'Cin-C' Paresh Barua and 'Commander' Jibon Moran.

with which you work to keep
your family healthy, similarly
you should work to make gram
sabha capable and carry out development works.”
She said when Rajiv Gandhi
realised that benefits of various
schemes and development
were not reaching the grassroots, he started the panchayati
raj movement.
At the instance of the then
prime minister, a law was enacted to decentralise power
through panchayati raj system
throughout the country, she
said.
The Congress president said
that during Rajiv Gandhi's
tenure panchayats were allowed to get funds directly
under Jawahar Rozgar Yojna.
“It was due to his vision that
Dalits and tribals got reservation in panchayati raj institutions,” she added.

Actor Abhishek Bachchan, who
turned 35 today, will be in for a
surprise party when his friends
will land in New Zealand, where
he is currently shooting for
Abbas-Mustan's 'Players', to celebrate his birthday.
“Abhishek's friends plan to
fly down to NZ where he is
shooting to surprise him. Abbas
Mastan have decided to give the
unit a break and celebrate his
birthday in a big way,” sources
said.
For Junior B, it is going to be
like any normal working day but
little does he know that his
friends will be flying down to
New Zealand to indulge him in
his favorite adventure sports.
“Since he loves adventure
sports but hasn't got the time
to indulge in them, thanks to
his hectic schedule, his friends
decided to surprise him and
have booked an entire day of
interesting activities in NZ,”

sources said.
All his close ones have
planned an entire day of bungee
jumping, white water rapids and
zorbing since Abhishek is a complete adventure junkie.
Friend Sikander Kher and
others have left for New Zealand
to surprise him. Aishwarya has
already reached there to be with
her husband on his special day.
'Players', a remake of 'Italian
Job' stars Abhishek, Sonam
Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh,
Bobby Deol and Bipasha Basu.

5 SIMI activists to go back to jail
PTI
BHOPAL, FEB 5
Five activists of outlawed Student Islamic Movement of India
(SIMI) who had been released
from jail in Madhya Pradesh on
the eve of Republic Day under
the routine amnesty provision,
would be sent back to prison.
“The five SIMI activists who
were released from Ujjain district's Khachrod sub-jail on Republic Day eve last month will
be sent back to the jail soon, as
the Madhya Pradesh government has revoked the order of
their remission,” official sources
said here today.
Orders in this regard were
issued last evening and efforts
were on to bring them back to
the jail, they said.
Ujjain Range Inspector General of Police, Upendra Jain said
he received an order from the

Jail Department that the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act
1967 has also been added
among sections, which will be
out of the annual amnesty
ambit.
This implies that the five SIMI
activists who were jailed under
this Act must be sent back to
jail, he said.
The move comes apparently
after saffron organizations and
various political parties expressed their displeasure at the
amnesty given to these activists
by the Jail Department.
Apart from revoking the remission order of SIMI activists,
the State government last
evening also relieved Principal
Secretary (Jails), Sudesh Kumar
from his charge and suspended
Khachrod Jailer, Sanjeev Gandle,
the sources said.
The five SIMI activists who

were released on Republic Day
are: Zadeel Parvez, Ayaz alias
Ashu, Akbar Kha, Meheruddin
and Irshad Ali all residents of
Unhel village in Ujjain district.
They were arrested on
charges of holding a terror camp
at Unhel village in September
2008 and were in judicial custody since then.
On January 12, 2011, a local
court in Ujjain sentenced them
to five-year imprisonment and
going by the State government's
decision, the prison term had
been reduced by half.
The State government had
released 608 prisoners on January 25 from different jails in
the State exercising the power
conferred by sub-section (1) of
section 432 of the CrPC (the Act
pertaining to remission and suspension of sentence of convicted prisoners).

TN urges Centre to prevent killing of fishermen
UNI
CHENNAI, FEB 5

The Tamil Nadu government
today urged the Centre to take
a decisive action to prevent inhuman killing of Indian fishermen, especially from the State,
by the Sri Lankan Navy in the
high seas.
Presenting the Interim
Budget for the year 2011-12 in
the State Assembly, Finance Minister K Anbazhagan said the Centre should take decisive steps
to ensure that the Tamil fisher-

men do not get killed in future.
The fishermen from the State,
who live under difficult circumstances, have no options but to
go to the sea to catch fish to
meet their livelihuood.
“Seeing the painful situation
in which they are being continuously hunted by Sri Lankan
Navy, the Tamil Nadu Government has raised the issue before
the Centre many times, both
in person and in writing'', he
added.
The Centre, while sharing the

State's concern, has taken up
the matter with the Sri Lankan
Government, Mr Anbazhagan
said.
“But the Sri Lankan Navy continues to indulge in inhuman
activities and are not stopping
the killing of our fishermen”, he
said, adding, since there was no
end in sight, the Tamil Nadu government urges the Cenre to take
a decisive action to settle the
problem and ensure that the
fishermen do not killed in future.

Orissa Women and Child Development Minister Pramila
Mallick, who was embroiled in
the controversial multi crore dal
scam in the state, today tendered her resignation form the
post.
Ever since the multi crore
pulse scam surfaced during a
probe by the Vigilance Department, the Opposition had tar-

getted Ms Mallick demanding
her resignation and criminal action against the persons involved in the supply of sub
standard and adulterated dal to
the children under the Supplem e n t a r y N u t r i t i o n a l P ro gramme(SNP) and the Mid Day
Meal scheme in the State.
The state Vigilance which had
submitted its report to the government, however, gave a clean
chit to the women and child de-

velopment minister, but provided vital information about
the involvement of some district
Collectors in the scam.
Prior to the resignation of the
minister, the two major Opposition Political parties-the BJP
and the Congress-today held
separate press conferences and
accused Chief Minister Naveen
Patnaik for shielding the Minister and senior IAS officials in
the scam.

BJP State President Juel Oram
and senior Leader Bijaya Mohapatra said the Naveen Patnaik
government could not escape
the responsibility in the scam
by putting the blame on the officials.
State Congress Working President L B Mohapatra on the
other hand, demanded the
Naveen Patnaik government has
lost the moral responsibility to
remain in power even for a mo-

ment.
Mohapatra even questioned
that despite the scam being detected by the state Vigilance it
was more surprising that the
concerned minister had not resigned from her post owning
moral responsibility.
The Congress also demanded
a CBI probe into the scam and
a medical check up of all the
children who had consumed the
adulterated dal over the last few

years.Mallick told waiting newsmen
at her official residence that she
had submitted her resignation
on moral ground keeping the
high image of Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik, BJD party and
the government.
She further said that she did
not want the Opposition to raise
their finger against the government on the pulse scam.

BJP President Nitin Gadkari being welcomed during a function to felicitate the party workers in Patna on Saturday

Omani held
for spying

An Omani citizen was arrested from a military area here
on suspicion of spying and sent
to judicial custody for 14 days,
police said today.
Hassan Bin Obdullah Bin Abraham (35) was picked up from
the Army Equine Breeding Stud
Farm premises here yesterday.
He was produced before Additional Chief Judicial
Magistrate Anshu Shukla,
who sent him to judicial custody
for 14 days Abraham said he arrived in India on November 25
last (PTI)

Banding to track
routes of birds
PTI
PUNE, FEB 5

In an effort to track the migratory routes of birds in the
Sinhagad fort forest near
here, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) carried
out the first banding session
in the region, tagging about
75 winged creatures this
week.
Witnessed by a large number of environment activists
and nature enthusiasts, the
BNHS eam caught birds belonging to 25 species in the
nets put up in the Sinhgad
valley which included the
Asian Paradise-Flycatcher, Leaf
Warbler, and Grey Wagtail.
Elaborating on the BNHS
banding session-cum-training
workshop for bird lovers in
Pune region, Sujit Naravade,
researcher, told PTI that during the excercise aimed at creating wild life awareness, the
team led by S Balchandran
weighed the birds, noting
down their measurements of
wings, head, torso, beak and
tail before releasing them into
the azure skies.
Since not much information

is currently available on the
routes they take, the tracking
of journeys of migratory birds
is expected to provide important clues for planning of protected areas for their habitat.
The birds that were banded
by BNHS, the nodal agency
for bird ringing in the country, comprised six to seven
species of migratory birds
which frequent the Indian
sub continent flying their
way from Urasia, Russia,
Siberia and Middle East as
they cross the eastern Himalayas, Naravade said.
With regard to the Sinhagad valley, where around
130 bird species have been
sighted, he said the loss of
habitat was a major threat
to the winged population
as the fort region is being
treated as a picnic spot by
revellers whose growing
numbers have led to mushrooming of hotels and other
commercial activities.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is an urgent need
to reduce this disturbance
to the birds in the valley
and use of plastic by
tourists resulting in ecological and environmental
degradation of the region
which needs preservation
measures,â&#x20AC;? Naravade
pointed out.
T h e t o u r i s t c a r s w e re
being allowed to go to top
of the fort to the detriment
of bird population, he
added.
The data on ringed birds
collected through recapture
and subsequent release or
its recovery as dead bird go
a long way in helping ornithologists to study their
life and movement pattern.

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Sunday, 6 Feb 2011

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GOA’S HEARTBEAT

Stifling
Our Local
Wine
Culture?

Koiteachea
kamak kuradd
naka
- Anonymous

Tourism

Parenting

email us at:
goasheartbeat@herald-goa.com

What is the definition of a
good wine? It should start
and end with a smile
- William Sokolin

According to experts, Goa is the only state in the entire
country which produces wine from local fruits. But why
is this industry being stifled? You want a high? Why not
have it the local, organic way? Herald delves…

BY CHRISTINA VIEGAS
HERALD FEATURES
t is interesting to learn from experts that ours is the only state that produces wines
from locally grown fruits. Apparently, other states make wines but from grains like rice or
from the sap of the tree’s bark like toddy wines. In fact, we have had a local wine culture from
many, many decades ago. Probably, even centuries ago, when wines were made during the
maharaja period!
Yet, at the Grape Escapade festival year after year, the wines that are displayed, promoted and sold
are wines from out of the state. Pots of money (our money) go into making this festival one of the
best and there is no dearth of glamour, fun and wining and dining – but all this, surely for the very
elite. The wines cost in thousands. What about the common people? How many can afford a bottle
of wine costing anywhere between Rs 2,500 to Rs 4,000? So who is benefiting at this festival?
Obviously the big wine companies from out!
Yet, quiz our Goan companies promoting these wines with regard to who is benefiting and
you are told, “The consumer.” That’s right! There is just no doubt that the consumer gets
to sample some of the finest wines from the world over. But then, who are these
consumers? Definitely, the elite! These are people who travel abroad
and can sample these wines anywhere in the
world. No, no! We have nothing against this.
Grape wine promotion can continue. It is always
good to have an exchange of goods between
countries. And the elite
too have a right to
purchase these imported wines, right here
in the state. But why at the
cost of our local wine industry?
If Goa is to be promoted as a lifestyle destination of wines, it should
be the local fruits wines. Because the local fruit wine culture is what
we have in Goa; not grape wines! In the early decades, Goa did
not have a culture of grapes wines, except for garnering in Port
wines from Portugal. In fact, there were some esteemed Roman
Catholic families who made wines from local fruits like ‘jamuns’
and others. But over the years, it fizzled out due to poor economics
and lack of government support to expand their ventures or to
promote this local wine making.
During Christmas or other special occasions we have the Goan
women churning out some of the most delicious wines. And not
just this, they make wines from local fruits throughout the

I

year; seasonal fruits from every season. And there is no better tribute to this art of wine-making
than ‘Successful Goan Home Wines’, by the late Edwin Saldanha, a skilled local winemaker. In
this book, he has given recipes of wines made from apples, ‘bhindas’, bananas, red cashew
apples and many other fruits. He also mentions, “Some boys from South Africa tasted my
wine and said it really tasted like sherry (blended, fortified wine from Spain). Yet, it was wine,
made from the cheapest possible fruit you could use in Goa – cashew. One lady from Germany
brought in cream of sherry. Believe it or not, it’s no different from my wine.”
Yet, how we Indians rush for all the sherries that come from foreign shores?
There is rampant ignorance in the state with regard to the number of families who still
make local fruit wines. Government bodies like the GCCI and GTDC should join hands and
help these people to promote and market their wines. Some suggestions are to have
made in Goa fruit wine festivals with winemaking competitions where cash prizes can be
given out so that people can be motivated in making their best wines and showcasing
them. For eg, Rs 20,000 for the best cashew wine or pomegranate wine or whatever. These
events should be held alternately in all the main cities of the state like Mapusa, Panjim,
Margao, Vasco, Ponda. That way, we can garner in the involvement of large numbers of
people from all across the state. Besides, we will get huge numbers who attend these events.
food festivals are one such apt archetype of how people go out of their homes to sample the
various cuisines.
Isn’t it very evident that Goa dances to the tunes of the tourists? So, it would do good to
know that foreigners are more interested in organic wines and not commercial ones. Even Indian
tourists today are big-time into health drinks. Who wouldn’t want to spend money on organically
made wines which are good for health? Fruits like chickoo and mango ripen fast and spoil easily
whereas fruits like jackfruit have become too tedious for today’s people. So why waste these fruits,
when they can be made into healthy, organic wines? Just look at the interest and enthusiasm for locally made
products. Why do people go flocking to purchase locally made products like pickles, preserves, ‘ladoos’ etc?
But our authorities definitely need to tap this industry and promote these fruit wines. The good news is that there is
huge market for this, but the sad news is that is has not been tapped. Right now we have a very small supply of these
home-made wines but the demand is high. The middle class and lower middle class will pick up a bottle of wine costing
Rs 150 to Rs 200 without a qualm.
Government boosting of this industry would be a boon to the school and college drop outs or other unemployed youth
who squander away their lives and thereby turn to various abuses. You do not even need a large area to start. Even a single
room would do. And just good clean water and your inborn skills. There is profit in this and the wines are produced
through environmental friendly methods. These winemakers should also be granted excise concessions.
But unfortunately, there is this monopoly, lobby (whatever you call it) of big wine players who stifle this local winemaking industry with their big stakes. In fact, the big wine producing countries, where labour cost has rocketed, are all
turning to India to start operations because they get cheaper labour here and even the cost of raw material is cheaper.
And we Indians just welcome them with open arms and go all out to make it easy to set up ventures here. But what is in
it for our local residents?

Digital Samsara’s
Goan Connections

Horses bring Relief in Rough
Mexico City

The term Digital Samsara
brings to mind technology and
ancient energies and the band
that goes by this name follows
a similar route creating
electro-acoustic music that
has international appeal

T

BY RON FIDELIS
he Sanskrit word ‘samsara’ is the indefinitely repeated cycle of transformation
and imbibing this into their music is the
international band Digital Samsara. According to their website, ‘Digital Samsara is an
energy field where ancient sounds and sacred
rhythms are discovered by the mutating mind
of evolving technology...’ The band creates electro-acoustic world music, their forte
being the use of traditional instruments
and sounds vis-à-vis modern ones fused
together using computer techniques together with great programming abilities.
Shani Ben-Canar first formed Digital Samsara in
Israel in 2005 with his wife Valerie Dechen Paley and
a little help from his long time companion Ignat Karmalito
and other musician friends.
“Lately, there has been a rise in the number of collaborations
of a core single. Two or three-member headed music ensembles
like Kundalini Airport, Goatika and Essence invite other musicians
to jam and be a part of their music. Digital Samsara is one classy
act from amongst these kinds,” Saligao born guitarist of international repute Elvis Lobo’s says, giving an insight on musicians
jamming up with cross-cultural musical influences.
“Digital Samsara has also collaboratively done work featuring
many great musicians such as Dirk Kunesh (Germany), Kobi Klar
(Israel), Shahar Kaufman (Israel), Alexander Garon (Canada), Ignat
Karmalito (Russia) and flautist Binod Katuwal (Nepal). From Goa,
we have our very own Elvis Lobo,” reveals Shani Ben-Canar. This
connection can safely be regarded as ‘the other’ closest affiliation
to the state, besides performing for its guests and local population
too, from time to time.
Shani Ben-Canar has done the final mix on the audio soundtrack
of popular Goan artist Sharon Mazarello’s Konkani film, ‘Tum
kitem kortolo also?’
“Goa does not have spacious enough and well-equipped sound
studios like the ones in Bollywood which accommodate entire
orchestras. Here we have to put together parts and pieces of

the orchestra recorded separately. This was where we used the
expertise of Shani,” reveals Wilmix. The final concoction of
sounds and the mix for this film’s music thus got meticulously
done by Shani,” he adds.
“It was very exciting for me. My father too indulged in
classical and orchestra music. So I thought this would be
a nice project for me to work on as well, given that I
was from the next generation and adapting to
newer forms of making music on the computer,”
says Shani. Born in Ulan-Ude in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, into a family of musicians and composers, Shani
had mastered the violin and guitar at an early age. He had then
applied his musical talents to sound engineering, programming
and other musical instruments such as the Arabic lute (Al Oud),
Turkish Saz, Indian tabla, sitar, Latin and oriental percussion.
Valerie plays percussions besides working with the visuals at
their performances.
“Since 2007, we have been performing as Digital Samsara and
coming for creative vocation to Goa to jam with local bands,
record new tracks and even shoot video clips,” reveals 1968
born Shani Ben-Canar.
With four albums to their credit up until 2007, their first music
and video DVD compilations called ‘India and Nepal discovered
by DS’ was released in 2008, apart from their singles released
for different other record labels ever since and counting. And as
we now know it, their connection with Goa, apart from this
state being their inspiration factor sure seems as profound as
their musical works.

G

uadalupe Pena’s great grandparents began working
with horses when La Hera Ranch still lay in fields
outside Mexico City. Now it is surrounded by graffiti-covered walls and barred windows but, behind its
metal gate, it offers hope where hospitals have failed.
After Pena was partially paralysed by a stroke seven
years ago, horses helped her to recover as she experimented
with hippotherapy, deriving from the Greek word ‘hippos’,
meaning horse.
She discovered the therapy – in which the motion of
the horse’s body stimulates the patient’s muscles – shortly
before she fell ill.
“We’ve lived with horses all our lives so it was the opportunity to apply it all,” Pena told AFP, as she prepared
one of five dedicated horses – chosen for their patience
and trained to avoid reacting to emotions –- to receive
six-year-old Citlalli Lopez.
Pena, who studied psychology, treats all kinds of patients
from severely disabled children to arthritic 80-year-olds.
Many bring their children as a last hope for help with conditions from cerebral palsy to advanced cancer or spinal
cord injuries.
“Patients come here because they’ve been rejected by
other places due to the severity of their problem,” Pena
said.
Surgeons doubted whether Lopez would survive a first
operation for a malignant brain tumour and cyst three
years ago.
She has now had 10 operations and can no longer speak

and barely move.
Pena slowly turned Lopez to lie in different positions
across the horse’s back, as it stood calmly in the dusty
arena. The horse’s body temperature is slightly higher
than that of a human, helping the visibly tense Lopez to
relax.
Pena then stretched her arms in the air, sitting behind
her on the horse’s back and encouraging her to adjust her
hips to keep her balance.
According to the American Hippotherapy Association,
“Hippotherapy has been shown to improve muscle tone,
balance, posture, coordination, motor development as
well as emotional well-being.”
Sessions at La Hera cost around 10 dollars, which is
costly for the mainly poor families who come here, but
they are still enthusiastic. Adriana Lopez said it was the
only treatment to show positive results for her daughter.
“This hand was really hard,” Lopez said, holding her
daughter’s palm in her own after the last session. “She always kept it bent downwards, and tight. It was really hard
for us to stretch it. And now it’s very soft and loose.”
Therapeutic riding – a broad term for treatments including hippotherapy – began in Germany and Denmark
shortly after the World War II and later spread across Europe, the United States and Canada.
Thirty-eight countries took part in the last International
Congress of Therapeutic Riding, in 2009, in Germany. Support is now growing in Mexico, where horses have been
a mainstay of rural life since the Spanish brought them to
the Americas in the 16th century.
(Courtesy: AFP)

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info ‘nf’un zone

Sunday, 6 Feb 2011

WHAT’S UP IN GOA??
D D Kosambi Festival of
Ideas, organised by the Director
of Art and Culture is underway till
February 10 at the Kala Academy,
Panjim. Call 2420452.
‘Sunset Art Programme’, an innovative
art programme for children, organised
by Kala Academy will be held every Sunday from 5pm to 6.30pm for 6 weeks at
the Jetty. Call 2420452.
‘Asturi’, an exhibition for
woman by woman organised by the Goa Chamber of
Commerce and Industry Women’s Wing will be held from
February 10 to 13 from 10amto
8pm at Azad Maidan, Panjim. Registration
is
open.
E-mail
goachamber@gmail.com. Call 2424252.
Physical Theatre Workshop for
Adults and Children, organised
by Sunaparanta - Goa Centre
for the Arts, Altinho, Panjim
will be held from February 7 to
12 from 4pm to 7pm at Sunaparanta. Call 2421311.
SEQC’s Twenty Paces – Solo
Knock-Out Quiz Finals will be held
on February 20. Call: 2452805-10
or email: prog@incentgoa.com
The Monte Music Festival
2011 organised by Fundacao
Oriente and Cidade de Goa
is underway till February 6 at the
Chapel of Our Lady of
Mount, Old Goa. Each
day’s programme will begin
at 6 pm.
Nine differently-themed
brunches, by the Goa Marriott Resort
with NINE will be presented on February
6 at Waterfront Terrace and Bar, Goa
Marriott Resort, Campal, Panjim. Call 2463333.
All Goa Special Healing
Retreat for Married Couples is underway for the next 5
consecutive Fridays at the Carambolim
Church. Transport will be available from
Margao near Fatima Convent, Bus Stand
from 6:30am onwards.
Hindi, Konkani and Sanskrit
languages courses, organised by Dona Paula Communicare, the Centre for

Fashion

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Pg2

email us at:
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HOROSCOPE
languages, will be held from
February 7 at Dona Paula. Em
a
i
l
communica_mundus@yahoo.co.in. Call
2456156.
The first fund raiser, organised by Bebook a mobile library for underprivileged children will be held on
February 6 from 10.30am to
8pm.
A jazz concert featuring humorist and jazz singer Ash
Chandler, organised by the
Goa Chitra will be held on February 6 at Goa Chitra, Benaulim.
Call 2772910 or 6570877.
‘Landscapes of the Mind’ – Impressions from near and far, an exhibition
of mixed media paintings by Rani
Sarin will be held on February 12
and 13 from 10am to 7pm at
Gallery 3 of the Sunaparanta –
Goa Centre for the Arts, Altinho,
Panjim. Call 2421311.
A Solo Singing Competition, organised by Omkar Cultural Association
will be held on February 19 at 5.30pm in
Dhargal. Auditions will be held on February 5 from 2.30pm to 8pm at Goa State
Museum, Patto, Panjim and February 6
from 10am to 6pm at Dhargal Panchayat
Hall. Call 9823306652 or 9673997188.
Animation Specialist Programmes,
organised by Arena Animations will begin
on February 14 at MGM Animations
Academy, Panjim. E-mail mgmanimations@gmail.com. Call
2225153, 9423885224, 9823013484,
9823611824 or 9890432246.
Third Konknni (Romi Lipi) Literary
and Cultural Sammelan, organised
by the Dalgado Konknni Academy will
be held on February 19 and 20 at
Kala Academy, Panjim. Call
2420452.
‘Ensuring peoples participation in
the International Year of Forests’
will be the discussion of this fortnights
Friday Balcao session to be held on
February 11 from 4pm to 6pm at Goa
Desc Resource Centre, No
11, Liberty Apartments,
Feira Alta, Mapusa. Em
a
i
l
goasdesc@gmail.com.

This is not the
day to go the
safe route. Be
the first one to
21 Mar - 19 Apr t a k e a r i s k .
Yo u ' v e g o t
some serious ambitions roiling
around in your mind -- and
the right kind of energy to
bring them to life! You can
convince nearly anyone that
your plan is the best one to
follow.

Taurus T h e p e o p l e
moving more
slowly than you
have a lot to
20 Apr - 20 May t e a c h y o u .
Someone is in
a big hurry, and they are
sure to get on your nerves
today. It's just one of those
things, though -- sometimes
you and your people are a
little out of sync, and you
just have to let them go.

Get tighter with
Gemini your newest acquaintances -take time to set
a solid founda21 May - 20 Jun
tion. Someone
needs to speak out before the
whole group disintegrates -and it almost certainly has to
be you. Take a deep breath
and start telling the truth, as
that is the kindest thing you
can do right now.

If you've been
somewhat
suspicious of
someone, you
will learn the
22 Jun - 23 Jul
facts today.
Your quick thinking saves the
day once again -- but it might
ruin your mood! It could be that
you figure out who's been stealing from the office or how to
get your kids to settle down,
but it might not make you happy.

It takes a lot of
time to learn
something new,
so don't be im24 Jul - 23 Aug p a t i e n t w i t h
yourself. You
can have a good time doing
almost anything today -- so
maybe it's a good time to have
that difficult chat with your
kid or clean the gutters. Nasty
business doesn't have to be
so nasty!

Step up and
play peacemaker between
the warring
23 Aug - 22 Sep coworkers or
friends around
you. You're feeling a little tense
today, and you might find that
your energy is better spent on
solo projects, as you're more
likely to start fights. They might
be productive in the end, but not
so much in the here and now.

Compromise
with your selfless and your
selfish tenden23 Sept - 22 Oct c i e s t o d a y.
Think long term.
You are feeling the urge to get
down to some more intimate
social business -- though that
does not necessarily mean romance! Try a heart-to-heart
with a sibling or a long walk
with one of your kids.

Scorpio You know that
you're not out
for your own
gain. Don't
23 Oct - 22 Nov worry if others
are skeptical.
You need to start some new,
healthy habit -- like exercise, a
new commitment to whole
grains or even just an hour per
day less screen time. You're in
the right frame of mind to really
make it stick!

Sagittarius S p e n d t i m e

Capricorn Opposites attract, but opposites can also
infuriate. Avoid
22 Dec - 20 Jan disagreements
t o d a y. Yo u r
family or friends are pressing
you to spend more time with
them -- but it's time that you
can't really afford. See if you
can get them to just chill out,
because you're sure to be
back with them soon.

Aquarius Exploring your
surroundings
in detail is never
a waste of time,
21 Jan - 19 Feb especially now.
Yo u
feel
amazed late in the day -something really big is going
down, and that almost certainly means that your ideas
are in the mix. Still, even you
are somewhat shocked by
how well it all comes together.

If someone's
ambiguous
comments get
on your nerves,
20 Feb - 20 Mar ask what they
really mean.
Your senses are a little confused right now, but with good
reason -- someone is trying
to pull something on you! It
might be a good idea to go
along with it, because you're
sure to come out on top.

Aries

Libra

with children
today, and you
will discover a
23 Nov - 20 Dec goofier side of
yourself. You
are finding your work -- or
chores, or even dirty, mucky
cleaning -- to be much more
fun than you would have expected at first. See if you can
spread the love around a bit
so others can share.

WORD OF THE DAY

Cancer

Leo

Virgo

Pisces

DID YOU KNOW?
Canopic jars of ancient Egypt

praline
Pronunciation
prah-leen
Function
Noun
Meaning
1: a french confection consisting of a caramel-covered almond
or sometimes a hazelnut
2: a cookie-size confection made especially of butter, brown sugar
and pecans: developed in New Orleans in the early 19th century
Example Sentence
The kids enjoy a delectable praline for dessert.

LAFFS

Canopic jars were used by the Ancient Egyptians during the mummification process to store and preserve the viscera of their owner
for the afterlife. They were commonly either carved from limestone
or were made of pottery. These jars were used by Ancient Egyptians from the time of the Old Kingdom up until the time of the Late
Period or the Ptolemaic Period. All the viscera were not kept in a
single canopic jar, but rather each organ was placed in a jar of its
own. The name ‘canopic’ reflects the mistaken association by early Egyptologists with the Greek
legend of Canopus. The jars were four in number, each charged with the safekeeping of particular
human organs: the stomach, intestines, lungs, and liver. In the Old Kingdom the jars had plain lids,
though by the First Intermediate Period jars with human heads began to appear.

Instructions
for Sudoku
9 x 9 letter:
To solve a Sudoku
puzzle, every number from 1 to 9
must appear in
each of the nine
vertical columns, in
each of the nine
horizontal rows and
in each of the nine
boxes

BY JANICE RODRIGUES
The Paranjoti Academy Chorus his demise, took over as the conHERALD FEATURES
ductor of the choir. It must have
horal music has always stirred the i s o n e o f t h e f i r s t c h o r a l been a difficult task to step into the
souls of the listeners, the singers’ e n s e m b l e s t h a t h a v e b e e n shoes of your predecessor, but Wadia
voices lifting spirits to a higher p e r f o r m i n g a l l a r o u n d t h e has come a long way and has been
place. But getting the singers to
with the choir for the past 44 years.
sing right is the job of the conductor. “For country and the world for the “It was difficult at first, getting on
the conductor, the whole Orchestra makes last five decades. Herald chats the other side, from being a singer
his instrument,” says Coomi Wadia, the con- with Coomi Wadia, the present to becoming a conductor,” she says.
ductor of one of the finest choirs in the
“There were people who didn’t beconductor of the choir, about lieve in me, there were people who
country.
The Paran- their recent performance at the said that I wouldn’t last but I had a
j o t i Monte Music Festival
supportive choir who made it all posAcadsible,” explains Wadia. Going by her
e m y
definition of her job, she had to bring
Chorus has sung in 22 lan- out the voices of each member of the choir, the right pitch,
guages in places like Eu- the right note. “They are humans and humans are sensitive
rope, the US, Middle East, beings. To have each of them sing the way I want them to sing
Japan and the Philippines. is a difficult job,” says Wadia.
“I joined the choir in 1961 In the age of hip-hop and rap, choral music has still managed
as a singer when Dr Paranjoti to carve a place for itself in the hearts of its audience. “Choral
was the conductor,” Wadia music has its own niche, there are young people joining it
recollects. Wadia served too; our choir has people from all age groups,” she explains.
a s a n a s s i s t a n t t o And this is evident in the numerous choirs that are also going
Paranjoti and upon the same way.

C

Parenting

Pg3

Monte Music Festival casts its First Spell
Photos by Rozario Estibeiro

HERALD FEATURES
he first day of the Monte
Music Festival 2011 held
at the Chapel of Our
Lady of the Monte, Old Goa,
kicked off with music from
two diverse genres, the Indian
classical performance by
Sumedha Desai and the performance of classical Portuguese songs by the
five-member band Os Musicos
Do Tejo. These performances
gave the audience a taste of
both East and West.
Set against the picturesque
backdrop of the Old Goa
Monte overlooking the river
Mandovi, the concert filled
the air with a mystical aura.

T

All steps lead to Monte: People climbing up the steps to the majestic ‘Our Lady
Of the Monte Chapel’ atop the Old Goa Monte

It runs in the family:
Zefan Rodrigues,
Braz’s grandson
started out the show
with an instrumental
piece
(above)

Photos by Rosario Estibeiro

THE MAN, THE MUSIC,
THE MOMENTS

The woman behind the
man: Yvonne Gonsalves,
Braz’s wife takes to the
mike, belting out a few
numbers

Like father, like son: Gino Banks displaying his
musical talent along with his father Louis (above)
The keyboard solo: Ace piano player
Louis Banks concentrates
on his instrument (left)

In the heat of the musical moment: Percussionist Bondo

MUSIC REVIEW

BY COLIN SAVIO COELHO
colin.coelho@gmail.com

Three different moments
of the musical genius:
Getting set...(top left)
In musical motion...(left)
Proud of his golden instruments (below left)

Lose yourself in the Delectable
Rhythm of Flamenco
BY COLIN SAVIO COELHO
lamenco is one form of art that is said to
have influenced the new world. The music
is expressed in three forms: Toque (guitar),
cante (song) and baile (dance). The album Flamenco
Guitano holds strong to the exact mood of the
flamenco, its expression and melody.
Flamenco is said to be the music of the Gitano
(gypsy) from Andalusia in Spain. But many other
regions have also played a very expressive part in
the growth of the Flamenco. In fact, there are many
artists of the music and dance form that are born
outside the gypsy community. There are beliefs that
Flamenco was, in the original years, simply unaccompanied romani singing (cante). Later, the songs
were sung to the accompaniment of the flamenco
guitar (toque), dance (baile), even rhythmic hand
clapping (palmas) and rhythmic feet stomping (zapateado).
Flamenco Guitano begins with a very buoyant rendition of Buleria. The gypsy beat is pronounced and most
notably, easily evident. It is followed by another one that
keeps the mood going in Pidamela. But then comes one
that we could easily identify with in Hotel California.
There is also the flamenco version of All My Loving.
From the beginning right to the Reggaeton mix finale
with Torre de Babel, the album is a live-wire. There is something infectious about the beat and the infection can

F

spread into an epidemic of harmonious proportions.
The other tracks that we could easily feel one with are
Baile Me, Una Paloma Blanca, Volare, Bem Bem Mari and
Bamboleo.
The album seems to have all that the Flamenco Guitano
would hold dear to his heart in his beloved Flamenco.
The 21 tracks put together are all characteristic of the art
and has the potential to keep the listener spell-bound for
a whole hour, if not more while playing it all over again.

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email us at:
goasheartbeat@herald-goa.com

Sunday, 6 Feb 2011

Pg4

Is Miley Cyrus dating a British Actor?

Ralph Fiennes may play
Baddie in New Bond Movie

M

iley Cyrus is now seeing someone new.
Many would say that this girl is highly confused about life since she has no control
over falling in love. The Hannah Montana singer
who is shooting for her new film, So Undercover, is reportedly seeing British actor, Joshua
Bowman. The two got to know each other
on the set and ever since they found the spark,
they hit it off immediately.
Miley, who was last in a long term relationship
with her Last Song co star, Liam Hemsworth,
now seems to be having a ball with Joshua. They
were also seen together cuddling at their film’s
wrap up party.
Well, let’s just hope that this relationship
with yet another co star is stronger and lasts
longer than the Last Song one. All the best,
Miley!

A

ctor Ralph Fiennes, popular for his villainous turn as Voldemort
in the Harry Potter franchise is in talks to play an important
role in the forthcoming 23rd James Bond film where Daniel
Craig plays the famous spy. Fiennes was approached by film producers and director Sam Mendes to take on what is being described as a “darkly complex role” in the film, whose working
title is Bond 23.
“It’s the first of a new generation of Bond films and the
ideas Mendes has push the film into darker territory where
the characters are modern, mature and challenging. The part is
one of extreme complexity and only an actor of great ability
and dexterity can take it on – and Ralph’s name is top of our
list,” a film executive said.
Craig is reprising his role as 007 while Dame Judi Dench
will return as his stern boss M. Spanish actor Javier Bardem
is also circling the negative role in the film but Fiennes is
being considered for a different role.
The new Bond flick is scheduled for a November 2012
release.

Shahid Kapoor is a High Flyer!

B

Mugdha improves
Mother Tongue with
Marathi Show

ollywood actress Mugdha Godse, who made her television debut as a judge in a Marathi talent reality show
says it has given her an opportunity to go back to her
Maharashtrian roots.
Mugdha, a former model who debuted on celluloid with
Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion said her school education was in
Marathi medium. “As a young girl, I struggled to speak English.
Now, I am struggling to speak Marathi. This is the irony of
life,” she said, admitting that in glitz and glamour of the
fashion world, her fluency of the mother tongue had
suffered.
Initially, she was undecided on doing television but
when she saw the auditions of folk artists from different
parts of the state, she decided she had to be part of
the show on Zee Marathi.
Talking to reporters, Mugdha who hails from Pune,
said the main aim of the show Marathi Paaul Padte Pudhe
was to provide a platform to folk artists who are driven
by passion for the art, to showcase their skills. “Competition and elimination is just part of the show,” she
added.
She said she was being herself as a judge. Speaking
about her wardrobe on the show, Mugdha said earlier
she thought she would wear traditional clothes, but decided otherwise as she was taken on the show for being
a Marathi girl who had carved a niche for herself in the
fashion industry.
“Hence, I have decided to have a mix and match and keep
a balance of traditional and modern outfits,” Mugdha said
adding that she has shot seven episodes so far out of the
total 34. As for films, Mugdha has Will You Marry Me? opposite
Shreyas Talpade due for release in mid-2011.

S

hahid Kapoor will be the first actor in the world
to fly the F-16 IN Super Viper fighter plane. He
will be participating in the Aero India 2011
show, in Bangalore, where he will fly the plane on
February 11. Until date, no actor has got a chance
to sit in one of the fastest flying planes in the
world.
A source revealed that the actor has been preparing
for this for the last few months. “He’s gone through
rigorous training for the last one month and will continue to do so till his flying date. Apart from the
training, there are a number of medical tests that need
to be approved before he can actually sit in the cockpit;
he has passed most of them so far.”
Incidentally, Shahid plays an Air
Force pilot in his father Pankaj
Kapoor ’s directorial
debut Mausam, opposite
Sonam Kapoor. As a part
of his role, he’s getting
acquainted with the
various aspects of
fighter planes and
also meeting air-force
personnel to get in
d e p t h
knowledge. Sheetal
Ta l w a r
producer
of Mausam confirms, “Yes,
Shahid will be flying the F
16. He will get the opportunity to feel the thrills and the major adrenaline rush that a pilot goes through during course
of duty.”

Slimmer Women receive
Higher Salaries, while Men
earn more if they’re Fat

High-tech Prosthetic Arms can now
be controlled with Thoughts!

N

orthwestern University scientists have developed high-tech prosthetic
arms that can be controlled using thoughts instead of a motor. After an
amputation, the nerves in a stump remain healthy, at least for a while,
and scientists are making use of this fact to create highly dexterous, thoughtcontrolled prosthetics.
Todd Kuiken and his team at the Northwestern University are looking at
how different patterns of brain activity can be used to control prosthetic limbs.
In an experiment, the nerves of the stump of Jesse Sullivan – who underwent
the surgery about eight years ago – were connected to muscles in his chest.
So, when he thinks about moving his chest muscles, the signals are picked
up by the nerves in the arm and interpreted by a computer, which relays the
information to the prosthesis.
“If you transfer the nerves from the stump to healthy muscles, then you
can amplify the brain signals used to control the arm. We can use those
signals to control the device,” said Nate Bunderson.
The team has fine-tuned the system that interprets these brain signals,
giving the patients control over a wider range of movements than was ever
possible before. Whereas most amputees seem to lose control of these
nerves over time, because they are no longer being used to control muscles,
in patients like Sullivan, the signals appear to become stronger.
According to Bunderson, this effect could be due to the brain getting used to the re-wired
pathways. “Instead of having muscles interpret the neural command, we now have a computer trying to interpret
the neural command and the brain has to adjust to that.”

Unemployed People suffer from
Health Problems More Often

A

M

en should be big and strong, and women skinny – a cultural lesson drilled into
our heads ever since we were tots. Unfortunately, that’s how it has to be if you
want to earn a fair salary too.
According to a recent study, men who are skinnier than average cash smaller paychecks
than normal-weighted men, while thin women are paid significantly more than their average-size counterparts.
Experts say it is just another sign that as a society, we have internalised the unrealistic,
media-driven physical ideals that show up in the workplace – and, therefore, the pocketbook.
Researchers Timothy Judge and Daniel Cable found thin women earned about 16,000
dollars more a year on average. In contrast, thin men earned about 8,000 dollars less
than their more muscular male co-workers.
They said that much of the problem is the result of subconscious decisions based on
entrenched social stereotypes. Their report cites studies in which obese individuals were
identified as ‘undisciplined, dishonest and less likely to do productive work’.
Conversely, the researchers pointed out that employers and fellow employees associate
values of self-discipline, thrift, hard work and positivity with thin individuals.
The researchers suggested that employers look at their assumptions about employees’
weight, because they may be rooted in prejudice.

new study has shown that compared
to people in employment, men and
women who are unemployed suffer
more often and longer from both physical
and emotional complaints.
The GEDA study (Gesundheit in Deutschland Aktuell, or Current Health in Germany)
was carried out in 2008-2009 by the Robert
Koch Institute.
The results showed that unemployed people between the ages of 30 and 59 years are
especially and often affected by physical,
emotional and functional impairments such
as sleep disorders, anxiety disorders, and
substance addictions. As a result, the unemployed make more use of the health care
system.
The health consequences of unemployment
result from loss of income, loss of social contacts in the workplace or loss of social reputation.
Unemployed men and women who are
supported by their partners, family members,
or friends are less frequently affected by
these complaints.

The Man with the
Golden Saxophone
One of the greatest saxophonists India has ever produced is Braz Gonsalves.
Having celebrated his 77th birthday on Feb 3, 2011 this genius performer
celebrated his special day with a concert involving his family and buddies.
CAETANO DE ABREU gives us an insight...

I

t is said if music is life, “Play on,” as nothing can ever satisfy us from
this hypocritical world that we live in but only music can give us exhilarating solace to see light at the end of dark and dreary channel. Reams
have been written about malpractices and chicanery engulfing our
ambit of perseverance and dignity although nothing constructive has
come about to be-calm our frayed nerves which fortuitously only
soothing music can be credited to that march of appeasement over our
feelings of despondence and turn the same into joyful ecstasy.
Music is a gift of God, the Almighty. It is the innermost sensitive feeling
which transcends into astral cosmic magnificence where man is but a speck
into that vast magnitude of the universal delight but plays its significant role
to bring unrequited contentment amongst the forlorn and the devastated. It
is in this context where man, for the love of music, transversed world acres
to bring forth his sublimity as dictated, to emulsify his zest for the joy of
living a happy and fulfilled life in the service of God and the mankind, and
this man is none other than Braz Gonsalves - the wizard of Saxophone, who
during his lifetime as a performer par excellence regaled myriad audiences
with enchanting strains of mellifluous music which did not come from his
brains but right from his heart.
Although knowing him from close quarters, say from three decades ago,
sketching a semblance of his profile deems to be daunting, nevertheless,
Braz and his beloved spouse Yvonne (daughter of the renowned Chic Chocolate)
made my life a load easier with their easy-going manners and affable banters
which encouraged me to subscribe to pen this profile for the others to take
cue and emulate not only in performing music but also to act in an dignified
manner which lauds their sincerity in action to make this world a better
place.
Braz was born in the idyllic village of Neura where he procured his first
music lessons imparted by his father Lawrence Gonsalves (the Parish ChoirMaster) to launch his career in musicology. At the outset, Braz went along
with the Village Band playing tabor in total synchronisation with the remaining

Celebrating
a
Musical
Journey

members performing for church festivals and the like but all within the preview
of church's discretion. With the love music creeping into his soul, Braz left for
Bombay at the very tender age of 15 and from thereon there was nothing to
look back and ponder but to look forward and enjoy the fruits of achievements.
Braz who plays with dexterity tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, in
addition to the flute has been a regular at India's jazz events which commenced
right from the first ‘Jazz Yatra’ in 1978 to subsequently follow in another consecutive five ‘yatras'.
Besides performing with great Indian exponents like Louis Banks, Rama
and J Mani, Karl Peters, Ranjit Barot, Shanker Mahadevan, Pam Grain, Hariprasad
Chaurasia, Shivamani, Monserrate Brothers, and others, Braz also did perform
with international greats like Charlie Byrd, Eddie Daniels, Sadao Watanabe,
Cat Anderson, Karen Crogg, Roman Bunka, Maynard Ferguson, David Liebman,
Albert Mangelsdorff, Tony Caprio, Joya Sherrill, Toki Akiro, to name a few. He
has been a soloist for recordings of Jazz, Gospel, Indi-pop, Ad Jingles, and
Hindi film Music. Being a pioneer of Indo-Jazz fusion music, he did recordings
of his original compositions called ‘Raga Rock’ debuted from Calcutta in 1970.
Braz's improvising genre saw him being featured in Europe and the Far East.
He underwent a world tour with his ‘Sangam’ and with ‘City life’ along with
Louis Bank.
Braz’s original love is devoted to his god, thus upon his return to the land
of his forefathers he is solely dedicating his spare time in the service of
humanity with a mission to teach love through his music with non pareil performance. From the personal front, one can say that Braz is involved in charismatic renewal which is in service of Christ. He humbly expresses that as of
now he is crafting distinct music to the glory of God, the Almighty, which I
personally may add that in his autumn of his life he is all set to gain personal
satisfaction through music to fulfil his mission on earth, can there be anything
else more sublime?

BY NOMRATHA FERNANDES
HERALD FEATURES
raz Gonsalves’ 77th birthday couldn’t get any better.
On stage was his long-time friend and band mate of
the Louis Banks Brotherhood, ace pianist Louis Banks,
Bondo and his wife Yvonne. Joining them was Gino
Banks on drums, Louis’ son, and one of India’s talented
drummers. While off-stage, were hundreds of his fans,
cheering and encoring. We of course are talking of the
concert that showcased the versatile musical talent of
one of India’s finest saxophone players.
Any article written on Braz would give one a fair idea

B

Women on the Tiatr Stage

of his talent with the saxophone. But to watch this talent
display itself in a setting like this one is a whole different
experience altogether. A packed crowd, a rainbow of
lights, one legend on the sax accompanied by another
on the piano, along with Goa’s Indo-Latin percussionist
only enhanced the power of the music.
The evening began with an instrumental, ‘Love for
Jesus and Mary’ by two of Braz’s grandchildren, Jarryd
Rodrigues on the tenor sax and Zefan on the flute. Their
performance was proof of the tips and tricks their grand
father probably threw in their cap.

...contd on page 4

On the Tiatr

Stage

BY TOMAZINHO CARDOZO

‘T

iatr’ is the most popular dramatic form of Goa. The very fact that hundreds
of ‘tiatrs’ are produced and presented every year, and some of them
having a run of not less than 100 shows, in a tiny state of Goa, proves its
popularity among the masses. No feast, no special occasion in the Christian community is complete without presenting a ‘tiatr’.
Like on any other stage, be it in our country or abroad, women joined the drama
stage much later due to social compulsions. A woman acting on a stage was
looked down upon and was considered of a low character. It took hundreds of
years, even in developed countries, for women to act on the stage.
In the world
Going through the history of various theatres in the world one finds Isabela
Andreini stepping on the stage some where in 1582 for the dramatic troupe ‘Commedia Del Arte’ in France. Isabela was a finest actress and could act only because
of her husband, Francisco Andreini who was acting in the same play.
In India
In our country, women started acting somewhere in 1789, when Mrs Bristow, an
English woman, built her own theatre in Calcutta. The females namely Mrs Deacle,
Madam Dhermailvilla and others who stepped on the stage that time were all
from Britain. The first Indian woman to act on the stage appears to be Binodine Dasi on Bengali stage, making way
for others to enter the dramatic stage.
On the ‘tiatr’ stage
On the ‘tiatr’ stage, it was Regina Fernandes who acted first, way back in 1904 in the ‘tiatr’, ‘Bhattkara’. At that time,
even the Marathi stage did not have a female actress on it. Regina Fernandes goes down in the history of ‘tiatr’ as
the first lady on ‘tiatr’ stage who gave lead and set an example for others to follow. Regina could act on the stage
because she was the wife of Joao Agostinho Fernandes who wrote and directed the ‘tiatr’, ‘Bhattkara’. She was a
fine actress and proved her talents on ‘tiatr’ stage under the direction of her husband, Joao Agostinho Fernandes.
Efforts of Pai Tiatrist
Joao Agostinho Fernandes, who wanted to give ‘tiatr’ a modern look, introduced Carmelina Fernandes, sister of

Regina Fernandes on the ‘tiatr’ stage. Carmelina with
her sister, Regina performed very well giving ‘tiatr’
stage a boost in comparison with other stages of that
time. Unfortunately, Regina Fernandes expired at a tender age. It was a big loss to Joao Agostinho Fernandes
and a bigger loss to the ‘tiatr’ stage.
Joao Agostinho’s love for ‘tiatr’ encouraged him to introduce Ms Luiza Maria Colaco to the ‘tiatr’ stage. Incidentaly, Luiza was the second wife of Joao Agostinho
Fernandes. He also motivated his daughters to act on
‘tiatr’ stage. Their presence added glamour to the ‘tiatr’
stage.
More female faces
Other directors also made efforts to introduce new female faces on the ‘tiatr’ stage.
Saib Rocha, another pillar of ‘tiatr’ stage, introduced Georgina Fernandes and later
inspired his wife Ermelina to follow him on stage.
Dioguinho D’Mello, a prominent singer of yesteryears, brought his sister, Ismenia
Fernandes on the stage. Ismenia was a fine singer and an excellent actress too.
Other girls who ventured to step on the stage in the 1920s and 1930s were Ida, Adelia Mendonca, Artimista
Almeida, Etelvina Menezes, Carlota, etc. The act of these girls needs to be appreciated because they displayed
courage in breaking the social taboos and opening the mindset of the society to accept that acting is an art, a gift
of god and that god’s gift should be shared with all, and the only means to share it is the stage.
Conclusion
Since the 1940s and afterwards, the number of female artistes on the ‘tiatr’ stge went on increasing. More and
more girls displayed their dramatic talents and received public appreciation. Although all of them could not make
a mark on the stage, some of them really contributed to the development of ‘tiatr’. There is no doubt that the
presence of women on the ‘tiatr’ stage provided beauty and glamour tand made acting meaningful and real.
(Email your feedback to: tomazinho.goa@gmail.com)

WEEKEND
Splendour

Pg2

email us at
weekendsplendour@herald-goa.com

Sunday, 6 Feb 2011

GOA’S FIRST AND ONLY GIP

BEAUTY & brains

A Feni-licious Fill of Goan Spirit

Why not a
‘Feni’ Festival?
BY CHRISTINA VIEGAS
HERALD FEATURES
he last weekend saw the Inox courtyard spruce up
to the very elite Grape Escapade; the festival of
wines. The whopping amount spent on the event
was all too obvious. Reason cited by the government: to
promote Goa as a lifestyle destination with a healthy,
liberal drinking culture. Yet ironically, tourists from all
over flock to Goa to pick up ‘Feni’ and not grape wines!
You don’t have to probe behind the event to see that it
is nothing but a Page 3 event where huge commissions
and kickbacks do the rounds. It is for the elite to sip their
wines and enjoy the cultural extravaganza. How many of
the middle-class Goans can truly afford the whopping
costs of those fine wines displayed at the festival? And
why should our money get spent in promoting wine
companies from out?
If Goa is to be promoted as a lifestyle destination of
wines, it should be the local fruits wines. Because the
local fruit wine culture is what we have in Goa; not grape
wines! The community of Roman Catholics are skilled
makers of local fruit wines whether from papaya, guava,
jackfruit, chikoo etc. But alas! Our government prefers
to relegate this culture to some kind of ‘within your
home wine culture’.
For now, let us stick to ‘Feni’. Why no festival to
promote Goa’s only GIP? In fact, one of Goa’s wine boys
at the wine festival asserted, “People come for free wines,
they just overdo it and don’t even remember which wines
they had.” So much for elegant wine-tasting and not
getting high on wines!
We need bodies like the GCCI and GTDC to come forward and organise promotional events for ‘Feni’. Just
showcasing some ‘Feni’ cocktails and flavoured ‘Feni’ will
not do. We need to take ‘Feni’ outside Goa; a huge ‘Feni’
festival in a highly populated place like Mumbai where
there are a sizeable number of Goans who will definitely
attend the festival and even bring their non-Goan friends
and introduce them to the potent drink. Besides, we
should have such festivals in places like Chandigarh, New
Delhi and Punjab where there are heavy-spending liquor
connoisseurs. The promotions should be vigorous which
should engender in these moneyed people ordering for
barrels of ‘Feni’.
According to experts, in order to accomplish the above,
we first need to gather market intelligence. We need to

T

BY DR NANDKUMAR M KAMAT

Official Language Act Loss of a Generation

ascertain the states with a drinking culture and where
governments are willing to help as in Maharashtra and
Karnataka. ‘Feni’ will also do whopping sales in the northeastern states as they need strong drinks to keep them
warm. Besides, the suggestion is also to market our brew
to the cantonment areas as the army has a drinking
culture. Why allow them to go for Scotch and Indian
Made Foreign Liquors when they can have a Goan-MadeIndian-liquor as potent as ‘Feni’?
For festivals to be held within Goa, it has to be on a
huge scale; an all out international event. In fact, there
are suggestions to hold an international cashew and
mango festival during the hot, summer month of May
when it is holiday time and no rains, thereby making it
favourable for people from all over to travel to Goa for
the festival. Dr Nandkumar Kamat, senior scientist enlightens, “Though cashew plant came from Brazil and
mango is from India, both are closely related and grow
during the same period. It would be ideal to combine
both and have an international festival. Show the manufacturing of ‘Feni’ with a distillation unit. The versatility
of ‘Feni’ can be showcased through cocktail making,
flavoured ‘Feni’, medicinal ‘Feni’ and also how the liquor
can be used in cooking. Bring out the different kinds of
cashwenuts – ‘masala’, chocolate, salted, roasted etc
along with the variety of cashew ‘ladoos’ and ‘burfis’
and the cashew apple jams, pickles and preserves.” He
continues, “Similarly, the versatility of mangoes can be
displayed with the various pickles, jams, juices, wines,
sweets etc. We will get tourists flocking for this event.”
Yes, the learned gentleman is absolutely right! Doesn’t
the government spend monstrous amounts of money
on the international film festival, Shigmo and Carnival?
Don’t they get their act together, form committees and
host events of such a large magnitude? So why not an
international cashew festival? We can have a variety of
literature churned out on facts on cashew apple and
‘Feni’. Perhaps, we could also club this with Goan food
and fashion. Now, that would be a rocking event!
Involve progressive farmers, orchard owners, ‘Feni’
distillers and bottlers and even the media can be invited
to be official partners where informative supplements
could be churned out. For the people outside Goa, this
would be a novel event. And for within Goa, we would
be able to garner in the support and interest of our rural
settlers too as which resident wouldn’t want to get
involved in an event that promotes their local product?

K

onkani is my mother tongue and language of my
thoughts. But I am nowhere when it comes to
writing or speaking good, fluent, real Konkani.
This is an impact of 11 years of school education
in Marathi medium. By number of worldwide speakers, Konkani is among 125 top languages in the
world. Molecular genetics has shown that Konkani
is genetically closer to Gujarati than Marathi. This
contradicts the anthropologically unchallenged
claim of ancient Goa as the centre of origin –
the much touted –‘Mulpeeth’ of Konkani. Ethnic histories of tribals outside GoaKukna/Konkana,
Gamit and
Mavchi indicate that these
Konkani speaking people
were possibly
the real custodians of
proto Konkani. But
there is terrific hesitation among 'radical
mulpeethwadis' to
communicate with
these neglected tribals
in Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Konkani linguistic anthropology is at least
half a century behind standard advanced works
done by scholars like Danish linguistic
anthropologist, Tove Skutnabb-kangas.
She is my role model to approach the
problem of origin, development and
expansion of Konkani. Such a task is
likely to attract a lot of personal criticism
and calculated hostility from certain circles. Her monumental contributions
could be seen at http://www.tove-skutnabbkangas.org/en/Tove-Skutnabb-Kangas-Bibliography.html. I wish she visits Goa and
enriches our own understanding of Konkani.
Konkani would stagnate if we don’t permit her
to flourish in every field. But this objective was
defeated. A whole generation has been misguided. The English website of the directorate of official languages tells the truth for all practical purposes English is the official
language of Goa and Konkani continues to
be the emotional and sentimental official language.
Konkani is the official political language and language of political campaigns. There is tremendous
procrastination on front of pro Konkani warriors;
self styled Konkani champions, writers, activists,
critics, journalists to demand demystification of
governance and administration in Konkani language. I would consider it a great victory if they succeed
in getting the official gazette published in Konkani. I

had given a call years ago - “people’s laws in people’s
language – ‘lokanche kaide lokanchya bhashent’”- expecting a movement from grassroots level to demand
translation of all major laws of Goa in Konkani language.
Not even a single law is available in Konkani. This is
most shameful achievement after passing of the official
language act.
A week before his first appearance as the Chief Minister for June 18, Goa revolution day ceremony, I had
requested Shri Digambar Kamat to get at least 100
major laws of Goa translated in official language
Konkani before December
19, 2010. It appears that
the act was misinterpreted as an act to promote only literary and
cultural fields and in
government employment include knowledge of Konkani as
essential.
Has the act become
a powerful social, economic, political shield of the Goans? If
yes, then there would not have been any concerns
against the migrant population or a demand for ‘special
status’. Once you get statehood, you have the full
mandate to protect and safeguard the interest of the
population which speaks the official language, the
Konkani speakers of Goa.
On February 4, official language act of Goa entered
the silver jubilee year. What’s our score during the
past 24 years? Konkani has disappeared from markets
and bus stands. Konkani is dead in Vasco, Margao and
Ponda. Konkani has vanished from educational campuses. The only Devanagari Konkani daily, highly subsidised by a socially committed Philanthropist is not
patronised by a million Konkani speakers in Goa.
Parents who declare their love for Konkani and send
their children to expensive English medium schools
do not care to patronize the only Konkani daily or the
few local Konkani periodicals, especially ‘Jag’, ‘Bimb’,
‘Konkan Times’ and ‘Gulab’. Official language act would
have real meaning when people would have their own
laws in their own language. The common man uses
broken Hindi to make purchases in fruit, vegetable
and fish markets. The only word the non-Goan traders
have picked is – ‘patrao’. They think Goans would be
pleased if they are called ‘patrao’.
In Karnataka, Kannada is the social, economic shield
of the Kannada speakers. Once you cross Goa, from
Karwar to Kanyakumari you understand the real meaning of states having their official languages. Where
Goa stands today? See the popularity of victorious
Konkani from Anjuna to Sinquerim. Is this the reward
Konkani martyrs deserve?
(Email your feedback to: nandkamat@gmail.com)

oil
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From

12

BY MIGUEL BRAGANZA

Carnations, Pinks and Roses

W

e are just a week away from Valentine’s
Day eve and Ashok Dande has set a
date for all the dandy dudes. In fact, if
you have not attended the whole day workshop
on gardening at his house and plant nursery yesterday at Nagalim Baixo, diagonally opposite the
St Michael’s Church cemetery in Taleigao ODP
Panchayat, it may be wise to rush now and pick
a few tips besides a plant or two. You can then
talk knowledgeably to your
Valentine, Valentina or whoever.
Here are a few tips if you just
cannot make it to Nagalim today.
Carnations are difficult to grow in Goa
but their close relatives, known simply as
Dianthus or Pinks, are easily grown. I know
because I am among the few who have actually tried growing carnations on a commercial scale in Goa ... and failed. The word
‘Pinks’ has nothing to do with the colour
of the flower or with the protestation of
the Negro lad on being called ‘coloured’
when he was born, brought up and would
die ‘Black’, while the ‘White man’ is born
pink, becomes green with envy, yellow with
cowardice and grey when dead! The flower
petals have a serrated margin as if cut with
‘Pinking scissors’. Hence, the name ‘Pinks’.
The blooms of carnations live for a long time, even as cut flowers.
For long lasting love, use red; for fidelity use a white carnation. Most
boys think they know all about the girl they want to date but often
do not even know her favourite colour. They have a week to do that
before buying the flowers for her.
‘Roses love sunshine, violets love dew. Angels love heaven and
I love you,’ or so go the lyrics of a popular song of this season in
the years gone by. The best roses from India go to Brussels from
later this week till the eve of Valentine’s Day. The price of one red
rose in the international market on Valentine’s Day is approximately
three Euros. On February 15, the value of a rose drops to a few
cents or pennies.
There are a few points to be noted by
those who want to grow roses successfully in Goa. The first point is
straight from the song, ‘Roses love
sunshine’, if you do not have bright

sunshine in your garden or terrace/balcony, then growing roses is not
for you. The second point is that you should preferably buy ‘budlings’
or budded rose plants of a desired variety and colour of rose from a
credible source. This allows you to buy a plant without a flower or a
bud. Grow the plant for six months, pruning and training it to have
an ‘open heart’ before it produces the first flower.
The ‘open heart’ is achieved by simply cutting the branch just above
an outward facing leaf with a swollen axillary bud. The new shoot
will grow outwards. This will progressively lead to the plant resembling
an empty cone. With sunlight falling
on the hollow centre as well as the outside of the rose bush, it will bear flowers
profusely on new shoots in all directions. If growing on the terrace or balcony, a twelve inch diameter and twelve
inch high terracotta pot is the best container.
After placing the ‘crocks’ near the
drainage hole, fill the pot with the standard mixture of three parts soil, one
part sand or coco-peat and one part
cow-dung manure or compost. Cowdung is not bullshit, even if it is produced by a male Bos indicus or Bos
Taurus or any other bull. Fresh cowdung tea, made by mixing equal parts
of dung and water and diluting the supernatant liquid after an hour or two,
is the best liquid food for rose plants. Give your Hybrid Tea or HT
Roses some cow-dung tea and watch the results. Panchagavya works
like a miracle on roses.
Growing up roses is like bringing up children: correction and training
is best done when they are young. The best rose plant variety can be
a disaster as a bush although it may produce a few individual flowers
that are wonderful. The lack of experience often shows on the first
specimen one seeks to bring up the right way but saves on the correction because it may be too strong. Correction often means beginning
all over again, after first resorting to a very painful severe pruning.
As they say, ‘One gotta do what one gotta do’ because things do not
change for the better by themselves: somebody has to change them.
That is how the premium blooms are produced for Valentine’s Day,
even if it needs a ‘Pink Chaddi Campaign’ to celebrate it in some parts
of India where turmeric grows wild.
(Email your feedback to: braganza.miguel@gmail.com)

undane astrology is astrology applied to world affairs and events. It is a branch of astrology which deals with
the rise and fall of nations, formation/duration of governments, political events which affect nations and their
people, fate of the head of the states, economy and prosperity of the country, war and peace, natural
calamities, communal/religious riots, weather etc. Mundane astrology is based on the belief in “cosmic consciousness” – the belief that that any celestial event anywhere in the universe also affects the earth and all on it. No
matter how far away the celestial bodies are, the unique vibration they generate through their movements in the space
affects everything on our earth. The ‘Tandava’ or cosmic dance of Shiva – the endless whirling of each atom and body
through space, in musical harmony and empathy- is how we describe it.
Everything has its own place and nothing happens without a meaning – even though we are unaware of it at the time.
We, means humans. Animals seem far more attuned to the cosmic dance. How do they sense earthquakes and floods?
No scientists have been able to understand this. Can they sense the earth's vibrations or detect changes in the air or
gases ? How do they know how severe the winter will be or even the day that winter sets in when our most sophisticated
weather stations fail? What triggers their survival mechanisms ? Researchers observed the movement of a group of
sharks just before Tropical Storm Gabrielle and Hurricane Charlie. After the barometric pressure dropped just a few
millibars they swam to deeper waters, where there was more protection from the storm. Birds and bees also sense this
drop and will instinctively seek the cover of their nests or hives. These are reactions to immediate events. How do
animals predict long term events like how harsh winter will be? And how do we help ourselves to their knowledge ?
Predicting the weather has been a human passion for ages. Farmers wanted to know what kind
of a season was coming; would there be enough rain or would there be drought? Would the
winter be cold or mild? How could they tell if a violent storm was coming? This being a pre
radio/TV and weather station time, they relied on natural signs to help them predict the weather.
The most convenient barometers were their own farm animals and these were rarely wrong.
Fishermen, for instance, notice that in autumn, migrating fish come back early in years
when winter will bring an early freezes, but come out later in years when the rivers
freeze late. In the USA , a groundhog is still used to predict the weather for up to
six weeks in advance. If you see a groundhog’s shadow at noon on the 2nd day of
February (Groundhog Day), then the weather will be cold and wintry for another
six weeks. Animal folklore has passed on from generation to generation. Much of
it is now forgotten, retreating in the face of scientific ridicule. But our ancestors
did not need fertiliser or pesticides and they had a lot more to eat. The earth
delivered much more. (If you think that this is another old wives tale, read this
one statistic: In India we only started using fertiliser in 1960. This went
up in 1965 to one million tonnes. Today it is 75 million tonnes. The
amount of grain produced has not increased)
Native Americans believe black bears
choose different sleeping spots in their
caves depending on how cold the winter
will be, or the fur on a rabbit's feet will
grow fluffier if the winter is to bring heavier

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ANIMALWorld

Weather Predictions
by Animals

Mar 21 - Apr 19

You're way out in front of
the crowd at the beginning
of the week. The possible
pitfall: impatience, where you
may need to allow a little time. Around
Wednesday or Thursday, by using a
little charm, you can have your cake
and eat it too. Put your ideas across
diplomatically. Aren't you a flirt on Friday and Saturday! You're 10 kinds
of fun now, just be gentle with those
who are liable to fall hard for you.
Sunday is a day at home for you.

snow. Simply coincidences ? But science is based on observation, and folklore is based
on centuries of observation . The creature with a 100% accuracy in predicting the weather
is the ladybird. They announce the coming cold by disappearing and are the first insects
to announce the arrival of spring.
HERE ARE SOME SAYINGS:
Cats scratch a post before a wind, wash their faces before a rain, and sit with their back
toward the fire before a snow.
If a rooster crows at night, there will be rain by morning.
Pigs gather leaves and straw before a storm.
If a dog starts to whine for no reason, you can expect a major storm.
Birds on a telephone wire predict the coming of rain.
Loud singing crickets predict the coming of violent storms.
Locusts sing when the air is hot and dry.
When toads appear in large numbers, you can expect rain.
If bears and horses get thick coats early, then expect a severe winter.
Squirrels are busier gathering nuts before a bad winter.
If wasps build their nests high, a severe winter is on its way.
Frogs croak louder when bad weather is due.
Birds fly lower and gather in large numbers on tree branches when bad weather is due.
If roosters crow later than their precise morning hour this is a bad weather prediction.
Bees and butterflies will vanish from the flowers just before the coming storm or rain.
Horses sweating in the stable or stretching out their necks is a sign of rain.
Dolphins find shelter in protected bays in order to avoid a coming storm.
If there are many bats at night, or flying much longer than they usually fly,
there is a glorious day ahead. If there are fewer bats than usual, this
indicates bad weather coming.
Crows croaking loudly in the morning is a sign of a good day.
If hens roll around in the dust rain is coming.
Swallows flying at very low levels means bad weather. Hawks flying high
means the weather will continue to be fine.
Gnats circling in a mass before sunset denotes good weather approaching.
Before a big storm, fish tend to bite more often, hence the phrase, “trout
jump high, when rain is nigh.”
Ants scuttle around busily before a storm and even cover up the entrance
to the ant-hill to keep out rainwater.
Before a hurricane, sharks that rarely leave their home waters will flee the path of the
storm while seagulls instinctively fly inland.
Earthworms come out of their holes before it rains.
When the cuckoo is heard in low lands, it indicates rain; when on high lands, fair weather.
(To join the animal welfare movement contact gandhim@nic.in)

Apr 20 - May 20

May 22 - Jun 20

If you're thinking about something new, don't rush into it.
Check out all of your options.
Some fresh ones may open up
on Wednesday or Thursday. Gorgeous,
grounded energy is on tap for you
these days, with matters of the heart
highlighted, too. On Friday and Saturday, you may not be incredibly efficient, but you have enviable emotional
intelligence. On Sunday, having people
over may be more fun than heading
out and about.

Whatever you're aspiring
to you can get it going at
the beginning of the week.
A key now: get input from
those around you, and lots of it.
Then, on Wednesday and Thursday,
ruminating on what you've learned is
favoured. It may be a challenge to
concentrate, but you can do it! Romance or some other sweet stuff may
come knocking on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, plan to soothe your
soul and rest those busy feet.

Sept 22 - Oct 23

Are you willing to compromise with a friend, your
boss, a coworker or a partner at the beginning of the
week? If it turns into something of
a tussle, Wednesday and Thursday
are excellent days to sort it out amicably. You're forgiving and compassionate now. On Friday and Saturday,
a conversation could get intense. It
may be uncomfortable; on the other
hand, it may be kind of hot. On Sunday
savour the simple things.

BY MANEKA GANDHI

Oct 24 - Nov 21

If you've fallen off your fitness
regime, renew your commitment to your health at the beginning of the week. Starting small
is fine. Talk a walk for example. A certain situation could get tense on
Wednesday or Thursday, and you're
not one to back down. By initiating a
dialogue that breaks the impasse, you'll
demonstrate both strength and flexibility. Observation's more fruitful than
action on Friday and Saturday.Sunday,
listen to your instincts.

Jun 21 - Jul 22

Keeping your emotions in
control may be tough at the
beginning of the week. Schedule in some destressing activity.
On Wednesday and Thursday following up is key now in all
aspects.You'll more than likely get terrifically positive responses. You might
just be a party animal on Friday and
Saturday, and even if you're not acting
wild, all eyes are on you. Get out of
your shell, at least a little bit! Sunday's
energy is super too.

Nov 22 - Dec 21

You'll love a game at the beginning of the week, whether
of the physical or brain-teasing
variety. Around Wednesday or
Thursday, lend someone a hand when
they least expect it. It needn't be a
big thing, it's the observant thoughtfulness that counts now. While you're
likely busy on Friday and Saturday,
you may not get the mental stimulation
you require. Make time for reading or
watching a documentary. Keep Sunday free to do what you like.

Dec 22 - Jan 19

A relative, a wise friend or a
mentor can help put something
worrisome into perspective at the
beginning of the week. Taking action
makes matters better, too. Wednesday
or Thursday should bring a big improvement, on the work or love front.
Work hard and play hard on these
days; when the weekend comes,
you're likely to be preoccupied by intellectual or interpersonal matters.
Think it through, and come Sunday,
you may be ready to make a change.

Jul 23 - Aug 22

Aug 23 - Sept 21

You're way out in front of the
crowd at the beginning of the
week. The possible pitfall: impatience, where you may need to
allow a little time. Around Wednesday
or Thursday, by using a little charm,
you can have your cake and eat it too.
Put your ideas across diplomatically.
Aren't you a flirt on Friday and Saturday!
You're 10 kinds of fun now, just be gentle
with those who are liable to fall hard
for you. Sunday is a day at home for
you.

What you think is a spirited discussion at the start of the weekcould be interpreted as an
argument. Take a little extra
care with your delivery. In a bit of a
switcheroo, you may be inspired to
bare your soul mid-week. Sharing your
innermost thoughts is scary, but it's
worth it. On Friday and Saturday, you're
likely thinking faster than most. Pushing
them can either be fun or a pain. Sunday's a great time for a little gathering.

Jan 20 - Feb 18

Feb 19 - Mar 20

Your intellectual capacity is stunning at the beginning of the week.
Formulate some amazing new
ideas and make some interesting
connections. Around Wednesday or
Thursday, life could seem dull by comparison, but just set about learning
something to regain your spark. Speaking of sparks, they're liable to fly on
Friday and Saturday, maybe in the romance department. You're a naturalborn flirt now. By Sunday, you'll be
happy to simply dawdle around.

Is somebody hiding something at the beginning of the
week? Try shedding light and
getting issues or secrets out in the open.
By Wednesday or Thursday, you might
just be shouting from the proverbial
rooftops. Find your unique expression;
it's so much better than the usual. Watch
your step, literally and figuratively, on
Friday and Saturday; you may be accident- or mistake-prone now. The arts
are in the stars on Sunday, whether
you're spectating or creating.

GRANDMA’S

At the British
Cemetery

I

BY SANJEEV SARDESAI

t has been widely accepted that the Portuguese rule
over Goa was for a period of 451 years from 1510
to 1961. However, many fail to note that a period
of 14 years between 1799 till 1813, Goa was under the
control of the British Regime.
It was in the year 1799 that news came of an impending attack by Napoleon’s French Fleet of 26 ships
and 14 frigates on Goa through the Suez Canal and the
Arabian Sea. Taking this as a reason the British landed
their forces in Goa and took control to ward off any
threat to their allies, the Portuguese regime here.
Sir Jonathan Duncan, Governor of Bombay rushed
to Goa on September 6, 1799 with a garrison of a 1,000
Europeans, rank and file in seven ships commandeered
by Col William Clarke. During their occupation of Goa,
the British erected many edifices and barracks in Aguada
Fort area, at Gaspar Dias and at Mormugao. None of
them remain in existence today.
Among the only constructions that one can see is
the cemetery that the British constructed to cater to
give a burial to their
near and
dear ones,
during
their stay
here. This
cemetery
lies to the
south of
the road
proceeding
to the Raj
Bhavan at
Dona Paula
and is easily noticed
by its imThe survey number
pressive entrance and
a long laterite stone fencing. Though the exact date of
construction is not known, it may be presumed that it
was constructed in 1802.

VIEW
Finder

Kitchen

Sweets, a Better Way to Express

G

The main gate immersed in vegetation
The
cemetery is enclosed with a fencing of 110
meters in length and 65 meters in breadth.
Initially it had no gate, and it is recorded
that the locals grew rice in the cemetery
compound. In 1949, it was repaired by the
British Consul and a gate was erected.
There are 47 tombs, of which eight are
with a wall constructed around them. The
latest burial is traced to as early as August
10, 1912.
It is mentioned by a traveler W Walker
that the maintenance may have been paid
for by the Collector of Belgaum. During
the Commonwealth Heads of Government Retreat held
in Goa in 1984, the then British Prime Minister, Margaret
Thatcher visited this cemetery.
(E-mail your feedback to sanscritic@sify.com)

oan cuisine is a wonderful mix of various cultures and is a blend of varied influences. The
cooking techniques, style and recipes is a perfect mixture of Christian, Hindu and Portuguese community. It is because of this cultural mix that has
gifted Goa the culinary wonders and
some great delightful dishes. Today,
we talk about the sweets which
are prepared in our kitchen and
could be a trace of history in the
next generation as difficulty to
prepare the dishes would lead to
avoiding of such preparations.
Coconut is an integral part of
the raw material used in the
sweet cookery. Its use in different forms, whether in the
juice or dessicated, this wonder
nut is extensively used in Goan
sweets . Goan sweets usually have
the same core ingredients of rice flour,
coconut milk, palm jaggery, semolina
and eggs, from which a formidable array
of sweets and savouries are created.
The most famous Goan sweet is ‘bebinca’ also known as ‘bibink’. It is a
wonderful concoction made of layers
of coconut pancakes. The extract of
coconut milk is added to flour, sugar,
eggs and ghee and other delectable ingredients are used to make this delicacy.
Each scrumptious layer has to be baked
before the next one is added, traditionally
it has 16 layers but can be made with less
or more. The dessert is baked in a specially-made clay oven, with hot coal as a
source of heat, placed above. Though
the process of making bebinca is tedious, the dessert is a
mouth-melting dream.
Hence, it was developed
in Goa's convents and
monasteries, where
time was never in
short supply.

METHOD:
• Mix the coconut milk and sugar together and
stir till the sugar is completely dissolved.
• In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks till
creamy.
• Add the coconut milk and mix well.
• Add all the flour to this, a little at a time,
making sure that no lumps are left.
• Pre-heat your grill.
• Put a tablespoonful of ghee in a baking pan (any shape) at least
6" deep. Put this pan under the grill till the ghee melts.
• Take it out from under the grill and pour some of the prepared
batter into it to form a 1/4" thick layer. Put back under the grill and
cook till the top is golden. Monitor frequently.
• Remove from under the grill and immediately add another tablespoonful of ghee on the previous layer. It will melt.
• Now pour another layer of batter of the same thickness as the
previous one. Cook under the grill till golden.
• Keep repeating the layering process till all the batter is used up.
• The last layer must be ghee. When it is done, turn the Bebinca
over on a flat dish and Serve
• Cut into slices and serve warm or cool.
SANNAS (Toddy Fermented Rice Cakes)
INGREDIENTS:
• salt to taste
• 250 gm rice
• 20 gm sugar
• 1 coconut
• 500 ml toddy
Method :
• Wash and soak the rice overnight. Drain
and grind the rice finely with toddy. Add
grated coconut and make a thick batter.
• Add sugar, cover and keep in a warm
place for about 3 hours or until the batter
ferments.
• Add salt to the batter and mix thoroughly.
Pour the batter into shallow round molds and steam for 15
minutes.
(Add taste to your life , keep cooking be safe and healthy and
keep in touch, till next edition of cooking on Valentine’s Day
as we look into cooking with love , for love and by love )

WEEKEND
Splendour

email us at
weekendsplendour@herald-goa.com

Pg4

Sunday, 6 Feb 2011

The World of...
Online Purchases
HERALD FEATURES
one are the days when one waited eagerly for their relatives to come back
home from ‘abroad’ for those shows,
that pair of denim jeans or all those boxes
of chocolate - just one amusing consequence of the result of online shopping.
Twenty-first century India has most
definitely taken to the world of making
purchases online. They save on time,
money and the hassles of traditional
shopping, state followers of online shopping. One has access to a wider variety
of items, offers and products that
are not available in the vicinity of
the buyer. All you need is a computer and a decent internet connection to begin with, and then of course a
debit or credit card, a net-baking account or
the mode of payment the website offers. It
has been a decade of healthy internet shopping
for Indians and in accordance, plenty more have
been set up. Of the many out there on the World

G

1) www.eBay.in

Mario’s Famous Five
BY ASHWIN TOMBAT

B
O
O
K

Wide Web, here are a trusted top three.

eBay.in is the Indian version of the popular online
shopping portal eBay.com,
one of the world's most
popular online marketplace. It provides a large number
of options for buyers in every category. The website
has a diverse and passionate community of individuals
and small businesses and it offers used and fresh
items with a wide network of international shipping.
Ebay is the leader when it comes to online shopping
in India. With just about every thing under the sun,
ebay is one of the best portals for shopping in India.

2) www.homeshop18.com

In 2008 PC World Magazine gave the website
the Best Shopping Site
Award. Three years
down the line and it has
only got better. With a
wide variety of what seems like everything
under the sun this website is soon inching towards becoming India’s preferred shopping
site. The site is attached to the Network18
Group, India's fastest growing media and entertainment group. Besides the website, HomeShop18 has also launched India’s first 24 hour
Home Shopping TV channel.

W
O
R
M

3) www.indiaplaza.in

The fact that the website has 3.5 million items for sale and also
an in-house control of web technologies, warehousing and logistics; supported by a 24-hour Customer Service Centre in Bangalore will definitely make it popular with buyers. No doubt in
saying that the site, with operations in Bangalore, Chennai and Austin is the world's largest Indiacentric e-commerce company with over one million online transacting customers globally.

...CONTD FROM PAGE 1

The Man with the Goldan Saxophone
In his signature gold buttoned black suit and newsboy cap,
stepped on stage Braz along with Louis, both ready to set the
evening on fire. Calm and composed and handling his instrument
with ease, he appeared as young as they come, not at all 77 years.
They began with ‘You don’t know what love is’, a smooth jazz instrumental that saw a peppy piano solo from Banks. “We last
played it forty years ago,” said Banks, very eager to relive that
time. Accompanying them was Sheldon D’Silva on bass guitar and
Gino Banks on drums, members of The Matrix Band.
From one composition to another, originals included, the evening
was as smooth as the music. The harmony of instrument and sound
between Braz and Louis was excellent, saying plenty of their musical
sync and their friendship. A few songs featured his wife Yvonne,
established jazz singer who in spite of the inconvenience of her
fractured foot sang with the mighty voice she is known for, scatting
included. Anyone who missed these two seasoned musicians’ live
performance missed a concert of a lifetime.
Photo by Rozario Estibeiro

hen I was growing up in the ’60s and early ’70s in
Mumbai, India had only a few cartoonists. There was
Shankar in Delhi, who had his own weekly, and Abu
Abraham. Both were brilliant in their own ways, but in Mumbai
we got to see very few of their cartoons. Our favourites were
R K Laxman and Mario Miranda.
They were a study in contrasts. Laxman had his daily frontpage ‘You Said It’ in ‘The Times of India’, with
his common man, clad in a torn dhoti and
patched shirt, observing the most
outrageous doings of our pol i t i c a l
leaders, industrialists,
socialites, et
al, but never
saying a word.
Though he then
did a three-column composite
cartoon on Sundays,
Laxman’s strength was
always in his captions. His
jokes were political and they
cut deep and sharp.
Mario, on the other hand,
relied on some wonderful
caricatures like Bundaldass the politician,
Miss Fonseca the secretary, Miss Limbupani
the filmstar, and others. Mario’s strength
was in his lines. He was a true artist. Though
this (very) occasionally meant that his jokes
were not that sharp, the visual more than
made up for it. Even a child that had not yet
learnt to read or an illiterate person could
enjoy Mario’s cartoons; they were so funny
just to look at.
I realised years later exactly how great
an artist he was, when the ‘Illustrated
Weekly of India’, then India’s largest-selling
magazine, would occasionally carry the
sketches of Mario’s travels. Each panel
was remarkable, not just for the choice
of perspective or the minutely etched
details, but for his overall mastery
with the pen and brush. They were
not mere illustrations for a travelogue, but serious works of art.
Over the last decade or so, Mario
has faded a bit from the public domain, not least because he retired
and moved from Mumbai to his ancestral home at Loutolim in Goa in
the ’90s (his cartoons continued to

appear in ‘The Economic Times’), but also because he was
getting on in age (he is 85 now). But however frail his body
might be, his hand is still firm, and he continues to draw.
And then, some years ago, Architect Gerard da Cunha realised
that though Mario was one of India’s most accomplished cartoonists, his life’s work was not documented. So he put in
years of effort to gather as many of Mario’s works
as he could, and compiled the
most rep-

Photo by Christina Viegas

resentative
and best works into a magnum
opus which he simply called ‘Mario de Miranda’. It
was a massive volume that chronicled all the representative
periods of his life’s work, including an essay by Mario and
samples of his travel writings. But, being the size it was, plus
by the expenses of collating all his work over two years or
more, it cost around Rs 2,500, and not all of Mario’s fans
could afford to buy one. But it seems a whole lot did, especially
when it was offered at a sharply discounted rate during exhibitions to promote it. The book seems to have served its purpose, of creating a ‘Mario revival’.
For, Gerard has now come out with five books of Mario’s
works. Two of them are the cartoons that he created for newspapers and magazines, classified over the years. One is a book
of the sketches based on his travels, and the other two are his
drawings of the two places that captured his heart, where he
lived all his life – Goa and Bombay (not Mumbai!).
There is very little that one can comment on the content,
which is vintage Mario, and therefore superlative. But let me
say that the selection is excellent, the books are well produced
hardcover volumes, on thick art paper, and the printing is excellent. Best of all, each of them costs just Rs 495, and unless
one has a deep compulsion to buy the entire set at a time, are
eminently affordable. So get your fix of Minister Bundaldass,
Miss Fonseca, Miss Nimbupani, Moonswamy and Co.
Get a load of incredible sketches in Mario’s Travels. Mario’s
Goa will delight each one of us. And Mario’s Bombay will take
those with memories of that city in much better times on a
nostaligia trip. If you love Mario as much as I do, these are not
to be missed.

Churning out music even at 77: Braz Gonsalves

Mundgod...Little Tibet

D

BY SAVIO D’COSTA
id you know that Mundgod, a small town some 41 kilometres from Hubli in Karnataka
is home to one of the highest concentration of Tibetans outside Tibet? When you
arrive in Mundgod, you feel as if you are in Tibet. The landscape is dotted with
multi-colored monasteries decorated with yellow and red rooftops. Our guide monk,
Saldrine is an American woman who has lived at Doeguling Tibetan Settlement for a number
of years and is happy to show us around. I make it a point to meet Saldrine on my
occasional trips as she is eager to to converse in English during my short time. As we
enter the courtyard, Saldrine gives us a background of the Settlement.
The 1950 Chinese invasion of
Tibet is a dark period in Tibetan
history with the loss of over 6,000
monasteries and temples and the
flight of the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s
spiritual leader to India. With
India and later Karnataka’s support, some 4,000 acres of land in
Mundgod was given to the Central
Tibetan Administration and Tibetan Government in Exile to help
resettle Tibetan refugees in Southern India.
Doeguling Tibetan Settlement is
made up of 11 camps of which two
- Drepung and Ganden - are only
for monasteries. The Settlement
has seven monasteries of which
Drepung is the biggest with a prayer hall that can accommodate over 5,000 monks.
When you walk inside the monastery, you come face-to-face with large gold-plated statues of
Buddha and Tibetan deities. You will see Tibetans dressed in their traditional attire just

People

TRAVEL

waiting for the bus or engaged in their daily tasks
including praying and studying.
Just being at the Settlement evokes a wonderful feeling of
being at complete peace.
The Settlement is the centre of monastic education. Doeguling Monastic University is
fashioned after Tibet’s reputed 500 year old Doeguling Monastic University which was
destroyed by the Chinese in 1959. It is home to student monks from many countries who
receive a Mahayana-Buddhist theological education and
live a simple monastic life.
Today, there are more than
8,000 monks in the settlement, certainly a Little Tibet!
We had lunch at the local
eating house which served
authentic Tibetan cuisine.
The meat-filled dumplings
(momos) and noodles were
accompanied with a mild flavored soup called ‘thukpa’ and
fragrant butter tea. Tibetans
weave traditional rugs which
are sold at handicraft centers
located within the village.
As we bid farewell to monk
Saldrine, we realise that despite the odds, Tibetans have
managed to preserve their culture and way of life. Now you
have an opportunity to visit
Tibet without leaving India.
Photos by Savio D’ Costa

(The author conducts organised educational tours for school and college students as well as family groups. Email: sdcosta123@rediffmail.com)